Tarnished Gold
by Dana1
Summary: Third fic in the Forget Me Not Series. Tommy's back in Angel Grove to finish high school but nothing ever goes as planned.
1. Welcome Home

Title: Tarnished Gold

Rating: PG

Warnings: The usual Power Ranger warnings such as mild violence.

Summary: Tommy's back in Angel Grove to finish high school but nothing ever goes as planned.

Author's note: This is the third fic of my Forget Me Not series. The other two fics in the series are: Losing White and Faded. This fic takes place about 6 to 8 months after Faded ends. I strongly suggest reading Losing White and Faded first or you will be very confused.

Time frame: As the title suggests, this takes place during Power Rangers Zeo but it's a complete AU.

Disclaimer: I claim everyone you do not recognize from the show. Everyone else belongs to Disney.

Tommy Oliver walked though Ernie's new café. He had gone to the Youth Center and was told about the lake café.

"Tommy!" Ernie said as soon as he walked up to the counter. "Are you just visiting?"

Tommy shook his head. "I convinced my parents to let me attend my senior year in Angel Grove. I like the new café."

"Thanks I just opened it."

"Where are Jason and the others?" Tommy asked looking around.

"Don't know. I haven't seen them yet but school hasn't been out long."

Tommy looked at his watch. 3:30. It figured. The one time he's early, no one's around. He looked at the menu and ordered a strawberry smoothie. He took it and sat down at a table. His Uncle Josh and Aunt Stephanie weren't expecting him until at least 5. He had been grateful that they allowed him to move in with them as his parents didn't want to move back to Angle Grove and almost didn't allow him.

He waited a half hour. Maybe he guessed wrong and they were at the Youth Center after all. HE got up and walked to his black and white truck. He was about to get in his truck when a red truck pulled up beside him.

"Tommy!" Jason yelled getting out of the truck. Tommy saw a blond girl next to him. Jason came over and they hugged. "How long are you here?"

"My parents agreed to let me finish high school in Angel Grove. I'm staying with my Uncle Josh and Aunt Stephanie."

The blond got out of the truck. Tommy noticed she was very tall and had a communicator on her wrist. He had gotten a letter from Jason mentioning a Katherine Hilliard and a Tanya Sloan. He assumed she was either Katherine or Tanya.

"Tommy, this is Kat Hilliard. Kat, this is Tommy Oliver."

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you." Kat said sticking her hand out.

Tommy took it and shook it. "Same here. I..." Their communicators going off interrupted him. He had missed hearing that six tone beep. "You guys better go. We'll catch up tomorrow at school."

"Welcome home bro," Jason said before he and Kat hurried away.

***

Later that evening, he, his Uncle Josh, and his Aunt Stephanie sat down for dinner.

"Tommy first I want you to know how happy your Aunt and I are that you are here." Josh Rush started. "Now we have a few rules. First curfew is 10 PM on school nights and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. We do expect you to keep your grades up and help with a couple of chores."

"We think these are fair rules." Stephanie said. "Your Uncle and I are not used to having a teenager around but we are not so old that we don't remember being teenagers."

Josh was seven years younger then Charlotte Oliver and in Tommy's opinion, was a cool uncle. He raced cars and jet skis. His Aunt Stephanie was two years younger then Josh and was an artist. It was quite different then his parents.

"Now Charlotte said you were seeing a Dr. Peterson in Napa. Dr. Peterson said you wouldn't be needing to see a psychiatrist regularly however, we do have Dr. Taylor's phone number if you need to talk to someone."

"Thanks." Tommy said. He didn't like going to the psychiatrist at first, but he later would admit that it helped. His memory problems had gotten better. It would be rare for him to blank on someone's name now. Maybe his parents were correct. Maybe he just needed to leave Angel Grove.

"No problem," Stephanie said with a smile. "We have you registered at the high school and you will be starting tomorrow. I spoke to Mr. Kaplan and he said there are two classes you were taking at Vintage High School that are not offered here so you will need to pick different classes. You will be happy to know that they have finished rebuilding the high school."

"That's great."

It became quiet as they finished eating their dinner. Tommy couldn't help but smile. He was glad to be back in Angel Grove.


	2. Will you?

Tommy was surprised the next day when he arrived at the original Angel Grove High School. The school looked as if it had never burned down.

He had no trouble finding the office as it seemed to be in the same location it had been in. He walked into the office and he was told he could go right in. The counselor, Mrs. Ortega, smiled at him and motioned for him to sit.

"Welcome back Tommy," she said in greeting. "I'm not sure if your Aunt and Uncle told you, but we were unable to place you in the same classes you were taking at Vintage High School as we do not offer two of them." She handed him his schedule.

Tommy looked it over and was glad to see he didn't have Mr. Harding this year. He wasn't sure if he would ever forget fainting during Drama class after not eating for several days. He saw he had Mrs. Applebee for his first class which was homeroom. He thanked Mrs. Ortega and left.

The classroom was on the second floor room 216. He walked down the hall toward the stairwell. He had felt a shiver go down his spine. He stopped and wondered why. That was when he remembered that this was the same stairwell that Goldar had abducted him from the day of the fire. It all felt so weird to him.

He shrugged it off as he walked to the classroom. He opened the door and saw Rocky, Jason, and Tanya sitting there along with a few other students.

Mrs. Applebee smiled at him as he gave her his schedule. "Welcome back Tommy. Have a seat anywhere."

He took the seat next to Jason. Jason took his schedule from him. "We have almost the same classes except you have Spanish 2 instead of gym."

"Yeah," Tommy said not wanting to think about the reason he was not taking gym. He was pretty sure Jason didn't want to remember it either.

"Doesn't the school look good?" Rocky asked. "You'd have never thought there was a fire."

"Yeah," Tommy said deciding not to mention the incident in the stairwell. While he was in Napa, he was able to forget all of the problems he had last year. It had been nice to be a normal teenager which he wasn't able to be as a Power Ranger. He didn't have to worry about being called while out with friends or out on a date with Michelle.

When Kim and the gang came up for spring break, she and Tommy decided to break off their relationship. It was a hard decision but it had been a mutual one. Tommy would always love Kim but right now they were just friends.

Class started and Tommy tried to pay attention to the announcements but he found his mind wandering. He made himself pay attention but was glad when the bell rang signifying the end of homeroom.

He followed the others out into the hallway. He had US History with Mr. Donaldson. He had never had him before as a teacher and figured he was new.

He followed Jason into the classroom and saw that Kat was also in the class. He gave the paper to the teacher and was instructed to sit in the fourth row behind Bulk. Skull sat on the right side of Bulk which was not surprising to Tommy.

Mr. Donaldson started the class with a pop quiz. He placed the paper on Tommy's desk and told him to answer what he could so that Mr. Donaldson would know where he was in the class.

Tommy looked at the sheet and sighed. This was actually covered the semester he was at Vintage. His mother had wanted him to take AP classes his senior year before he had convinced them to allow him to finish high school in Angel Grove. Angel Grove offered only a couple of AP classes but since school had started a week before, they were all completely full. Tommy took his pencil out and started answering the questions.

***

Tommy was in the Youth Center doing some stretches a few weeks later. He was planning to do some sparring with Adam when he and the others returned from whatever Zordon had called them for. Part of him really missed being a Ranger but another part of him was glad the stress of being a Ranger was out of his life. Now that he was no longer a Ranger, he could see the stress and tiredness written over his friends' faces.

It didn't take Tommy long to realize he was the 'outsider' among his friends. He could still remember being so scared of losing his Green Ranger powers and losing his friends but he had survived that and knew no matter what happened he wouldn't lose his friends.

He tugged his hair into a tighter ponytail and stepped onto the mat and started performing a few katas to warm up while he waited.

Ten minutes later, he watched as Jason hurried into the Youth Center and right up to him. "I need to talk to you."

"Okay," Tommy said before following him out of the Youth Center. "What is it Jase?" He asked.

"We need a new Gold Ranger. Trey, who's the Gold Ranger right now, needs to transfer his powers while he is reunified. We were hoping you'd take the power."

"Me?" Tommy asked feeling a little astounded. Had Jason forgotten why he was no longer a Ranger? "Jason I can't."

"Why not?" Jason asked in a shocked voice.

"I'm here to finish High School. I promised my parents that I wouldn't become a Ranger again. Also, I don't want to be a Ranger again." That last part was hard for him to say even if it was true.

"Tommy," Jason said still a little surprised by Tommy's reaction. "We wouldn't be asking if it wasn't an emergency. If Trey doesn't transfer the powers they will be lost. Tommy we need you."

"I just don't know. Remember why I stopped being a Ranger?"

"You told us your memory problems are gone. Zordon will probably want to check it or something, but we all want you back on the team. I wouldn't be asking you if we didn't."

"Okay." Tommy said with some reluctance. "I'll do it."


	3. Back to Action

Tommy still wasn't sure why he agreed to this as he and Jason drove to the desert. He supposed it was because deep down, he never liked to let people down. His friends needed him and this was different then when Jason had tried to get him to take back the White Ranger Powers. There was no other choice. It wasn't much different then the time he used his Ninjetti Powers to help save Trini and Zack. Even though it was dangerous and he was so uncertain, he couldn't let his friends be hurt.

He had been informed that they couldn't teleport because they were using all of the power in the Command Center to power the Zeo Crystals. He had sunglasses on and a bandanna. Jason said it was Zordon's suggestion as they didn't want to tip off King Mondo who it was.

They got out of Jason's truck and started to walk through the desert.

"There's no cover here." Jason explained. "We'll have to make a run for it."

They started running and were stopped by a flash of light. Standing in front of them were cogs which Tommy had seen on the news many times. He and Jason got into fighting stances and then took the robots.

Tommy found the cogs to be as annoying to fight as the Tengas and Putties that Zedd and Rita used to send down for them to fight. He slammed his palm into one of the Cogs and felt pain go through his hand. He had forgotten about his hand. He had a doctor's note that kept him out of PE.

Jason turned to him looking worried, "you okay?"

"Fine!" Tommy said before hitting the Cog with his other hand.

They took off running with the cogs following them. Tommy never thought 100 yards could seem so far away. He had played football for a season but this felt different.

He tripped over a rock and fell to the ground. He pulled himself back up to his feet and readied to fight the Cogs again, before they were teleported away.

He landed in the Command Center and yet it wasn't the Command Center. The room looked different. Jason ran in front of him and he sort of lagged behind looking around. He came in and took his sunglasses off. He smiled at the others.

"TOMMY WELCOME BACK." Zordon boomed. "I TAKE IT YOU HAVE AGREED TO BE THE GOLD RANGER?"

"Yes." Tommy said though he didn't feel completely certain at this point.

"We must hurry and transfer the powers." One of the three identical men said. Tommy figured he had to be Trey the current Gold Ranger. He had gotten the gist of it on the drive to the desert.

Tommy stood there waiting.

The alarms started going off.

"KING MONDO HAS SENT DOWN A MONSTER." Zordon informed them. "YOU MUST TELEPORT DOWN AND STOP IT."

Jason looked at him and he smiled. "I'll join you." He promised.

The power transfer started.

It felt weird to Tommy to have the powers flow into him. He closed his eyes and allowed it. He felt happy to be receiving the Gold Ranger powers and yet nervous. What if what happened when he was a previous Ranger happened again? What if his memory loss problems started again? What if he couldn't fight because of his finger?

He opened his eyes when he felt the Gold Ranger powers stop flowing into him.

"The powers have been transferred. Tommy to morph you say Gold Ranger Power." Trey informed him. "Your zord is called Pyramidis and you will need to just call it. You will also have a staff."

Tommy nodded.

"TOMMY YOU NEED TO JOIN THE OTHERS." Zordon said.

Tommy nodded, "return to action!" He called. It felt weird to say those three words again, and yet he felt happy.

###

Notes: To answer someone's question, the main villains will be Gaskett. I always liked Gaskett.


	4. Tests

Tommy fought the Cogs and Monster along side of the other Zeo Rangers. The Cogs were not that much different then the Putties and Tengas he had fought when he had been a Ranger previously. He found that he was not out of practice like he thought he would be. During his time in Napa he had time to dedicate to his karate training. He didn't have anyone to spar with, but he still found ways to practice.

He was also happy to see that the Ranger powers were keeping his hand from hurting which he was grateful for. He couldn't have been able to be nearly as effective if it did.

It wasn't long before the Monster was enlarged. He watched as the Rangers called their Zords and was about to do the same with Pyramidis but the sound of his communicator going off stopped him.

"I read you Zordon," Tommy answered.

"TOMMY YOU MUST RETURN TO THE POWER CHAMBER. WE NEED TO DO A FEW TESTS."

Tommy was a little more then surprised by this request. The others needed him. "But Zordon..."

"THE TESTS WILL NOT TAKE LONG AND IF THE RANGERS STILL NEED YOU, I WILL SEND YOU DOWN."

Tommy hit a button on the Zeonizer and teleported back to the Power Chamber.

"TOMMY YOU WILL NEED TO POWER DOWN FIRST," Zordon instructed.

One of the Trey's stepped forward. "To power down you cross your arms over your chest and then uncross them while saying, Gold Ranger Power Down."

Tommy did as instructed.

Alpha came up next to him with a scanner and started scanning him.

"Did your hand hurt?" Alpha asked.

"No I didn't feel any pain when fighting the Cogs."

Zordon nodded. "THAT IS GOOD. TOMMY LIE DOWN ON THE BIOBED."

Tommy sat down on the biobed and looked at the Viewing Globe, or to be more accurate viewing screen. The whole Power Chamber had changed quite a bit since he had been gone. He watched as the Rangers fought the Monster and were having no difficulty doing so. He wondered if his taking the powers was that necessary. He decided not to ask that question.

"This won't hurt Tommy. Just lie back."

Tommy knew what they were testing for and was not surprised. The only surprise was that he was called back during a fight for this. He ignored Alpha's request and said to Zordon, "couldn't this have waited until after the fight?"

"NO IT IS BEST TO DO IT NOW."

Tommy shook his head but laid down anyway. He knew there was something Zordon wasn't telling him.

Alpha did the scan which did not take long at all.

Tommy was just sitting up when the Rangers came back to the Power Chamber.

"Are you okay bro?" Jason asked coming up to him. He looked at Alpha who was entering information from the scans into one of the consoles. Tommy was sure that Jason was thinking the same thing he was. They were checking his brainwaves.

"I'm fine." Tommy said sliding off the biobed. "So what's the verdict Zordon?"

"EVERYTHING SEEMS TO BE NORMAL. SOME OF THE ALTERATIONS AND BLOCKS ARE STILL THERE BUT I BELIEVE YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE ANY FURTHER TROUBLE."

Tommy just nodded. He was still rather confused on the timing of his going back to the Power Chamber and the fight. Wouldn't it have been more effective to wait until after the monster was defeated or were they more concerned about his reaction to fighting the Cogs? He would have to ask Zordon later right now he wanted to talk to Trey before he left.


	5. Spar

"Trey wait!" Tommy called when he saw the Triphorian was about to teleport out.

The three Treys turned to face him. "Yes Tommy?" One asked. Tommy wasn't sure which who had spoken as he had never been formally introduced.

"Was the testing in the middle of a battle necessary?" He asked. He supposed he could have asked Zordon but something inside him told him he would receive a truthful answer if he asked Trey.

"During the battle," a different Trey answered, "we had to make sure you were mentally balanced in order to be the Gold Ranger. It was Zordon's suggestion we take you away from the battle to receive a better result from the test. We understand that you have had problems before and we wanted to be sure everything was fine."

"Please be assured Tommy," the second Trey said, "everything is fine. You are in great mental health. Zordon agrees with the results also."

"You will be a fine Gold Ranger," the third Trey said.

"Thanks," Tommy said though he still wasn't quite sure about all of this.

***

Tommy went to the Youth Center after talking to Trey. He found Jason and Adam sparring. Kat, Tanya, and Rocky were sitting at a table talking. Tommy walked over and sat in an empty chair and watched his friends spar.

When Adam and Jason finished sparring, they joined the others at the table.

"You feel up to sparring some more bro?" Tommy asked Jason.

"Yeah," Jason grinned.

"I need to change first," Tommy said as he stood up. He walked to the locker room and opened his usual locker. He took his work out clothes out of the bag and then placed the bag into his locker and then locked it with his combination lock. He was about to stand up but stopped. He wasn't completely sure why, but something stopped him. He pushed it aside for the moment and changed.

Tommy had to admit he had missed sparring when he was in Napa. He and Jason had sparred quite a few times since his return, but he always remembered how much he had missed it.

As a lot of times went, the spar had ended in a draw. Which showed to both of them how they were both were at the same level. Jason was the only one that could match Tommy move for move and vice versa. It was why they enjoyed sparring with each other.

"Tommy looked at his watch. "I gotta go. I told my Aunt I'd be home ten minutes ago."

"Nothings changed," Rocky joked. "You are always late."

Tommy grinned before heading to the locker room to change.

There were a couple of people in there who, from the looks of it, had been outside playing basketball. Tommy changed and was about to leave when Jason came in. By then the Tommy was alone in the locker room

"I almost forgot to give you this," Jason said handing him a communicator.

Tommy looked down and saw the white stripe. It had been the communicator he had left in the Command Center before he left Angel Grove.

Tommy held it in his hand for a moment longer before putting it on his wrist. "Thanks."

"No problem man." Jason said flashing him a smile. "You'll need it."

"Yeah," Tommy said with a sigh. He knew full well he probably would need it. "I've got to go," Tommy said. "See you later Jase." He said as he walked out of the locker room

Tommy went outside and unlocked his jeep. He threw his bag inside and sat in the driver's seat for a moment. He thought about what had happened that day and wondered what he had gotten himself into.


	6. A Talk With Friends

Tommy walked into his Aunt and Uncle's home and found it empty. He looked at his watch and shrugged. He went into the kitchen to get a glass of water and found a note.

Tommy,

I'm meeting Josh at the lake and we'll have dinner in Stone Canyon. There's still leftover lasagna in the fridge if you want it.

Love,

Stephanie

Tommy took the lasagna out and was about to heat it in the microwave when the phone rang.

"Hello?" He asked.

"Hey Tommy it's me," Heidi answered. "How are things in the grove of angels?"

Tommy snorted. His friends in Napa had started calling Angel Grove that when Jason, Kimberly, Billy, Aisha, Rocky, and Adam came to visit saying something along the lines of they were too nice, as was Tommy, and that was how the city got its name.

"Everythings fine," Tommy answered. "I was just about to eat dinner."

"Well I can't say I'm not relieved to hear that you aren't out on a Friday night," Heidi said causing Tommy to blush. "I'm getting ready for the Homecoming Dance."

"Who are you going with?" Tommy asked trying to hide any jealousy.

"I'm going stag. I was going to go with this great guy but he moved." She said with a chuckle. "Then Chad broke his ankle in two places at football practice so he can't go. Don't worry this Homecoming Princess can handle it."

Tommy wished he could teleport there to take her but that would be impossible. He looked at the calendar. "Wait isn't the dance tomorrow night?"

"Yes but don't worry. I'm not calling to have you take me to the dance. I was just calling to check on you. We all miss you."

"I miss you guys too. Heidi are you sure you don't want me to take you to the dance? It would be no problem."

"No. I'll just hang out with the gang. You are sweet to offer." There was a beep. "Oops I've got to go. I'll talk to you soon." She said and hung up.

Tommy set the phone down in the cradle.

He was about to put the lasagna in the microwave when his communicator went off. It was probably a good thing he wasn't going to take her to the Homecoming Dance. He would not be able to guarantee he wouldn't be fighting a monster the night of the dance.

Tommy teleported to the Power Chamber and found the other Rangers waiting for him.

"What's going on Zordon?" Jason asked stepping forward.

"KING MONDO HAS SENT DOWN A ROBOT TO ANGEL GROVE PARK. YOU MUST GO DOWN AND STOP IT."

"It's morphin time!" Jason yelled.

They teleported down to the park and found, thankfully, it empty except for the robot and a handful of cogs.

Jason and Tommy took on the monster while the others fought the Cogs.

The fight continued uneventful for the first ten minutes before the monster grew in size. They called their Zords.

Tommy was amazed by what he saw when he entered Pyramidis. It was different then the cockpits of the Dragonzord, Tigerzord, and Falconzord. Not that there was anything wrong with Pyramidis, it was just larger then his previous Zords.

They fought the robot and were able to easily defeat it.

After they finished the fight, they powered down. They stood there for a moment just staring at the empty park after the fight.

"So how does it feel to be back?" Jason asked.

"It's great." Tommy said and was a little surprised that he meant it. After everything he had gone through as a Ranger, he had been happy in Napa. Now he was happy being a Ranger again.

They stood there for a few minutes talking before noticing how late it was.

"I better go," Kat said. "I have a ballet class at seven tomorrow morning."

"Yeah," Rocky said as he looked at his watch. "I promised my mom I wouldn't be out late. Tomorrow's Nini's first communion."

Pretty soon everyone was gone leaving Tommy and Jason alone in the park.

"Does it ever bother you?" Tommy asked.

"Does what ever bother me?" Jason asked looking at his best friend with a confused look on his face.

"That," Tommy said pointing at something across the park. Jason saw it was the playground. A shiver went down his spine. He knew what Tommy was referring to now.

"I try not to think about it," Jason answered truthfully. "I don't want to think about what I did but there isn't a day where something will make me think about it." He looked down at Tommy's hand. "I'm sorry."

"Jase I forgave you a long time ago for that. It wasn't your fault. You were under a spell. You guys never held it against me what I did any of times Rita or Zedd had me under a spell. This is no different."

"You never hurt anyone while under a spell. When you were the Gray Ranger the only thing you did was steal Saba and we got him back. I cut your finger off."

Tommy wiggled all of his fingers to show they almost all worked okay. He tried to hide the pain when he moved the before mentioned finger. "I'm okay Jason."

"Are you really?" Jason asked turning to face him.

"I am. Don't tell my parents but I think I just needed to get away from Angel Grove for awhile. It gave me time to think and heal." He held up the Zeonizer that he hadn't sent back to the pocket dimension when he powered down and said, "this isn't what I planned to be doing when I came back though."

"Yeah." Jason said nodding. "But we are glad you are back bro."

Tommy looked at his watch. "I better go. My Aunt and Uncle are probably back from Stone Canyon wondering where I am. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Tommy said and then hurried away.

Jason watched him go before walking over to the playground. He sat on one of the swings. Unlike his friends, no one was expecting him home. His parents were away on a business trip until Tuesday so there was no reason for him to get home right away.

He didn't tell Tommy the complete truth. He thought about what he had done while under Zedd's spell a lot. Not all of the time but still a lot. He didn't know what he'd do if it ever happened again to himself or anyone else. At least Rita and Zedd were gone.

He got up and left the park.

***

Notes: I love foreshadowing what can I say?


	7. Suspicious Minds

Notes: I like to think this fic has a lot to do with Tommy and his friendships with the other Rangers especially Jason. No slash ever intended. I just like the friendship.

A week later, Tommy stood off to the side watching a beach volleyball game. He was acting as the referee. It had started as an uneven game as there were only five players until they convinced Emily, who had just finished working at the Beach Café, to join the game. At the moment Jason, Emily, and Tanya were beating Kat, Rocky, and Adam but they were all having too much fun to care. When the game ended, they sat down on blankets close to the lake.

"So Tommy," Emily started, "why weren't you playing? Don't like beach volleyball?"

There was silence as no one knew how to answer the question.

"Injury," Tommy said deciding that was the best answer he could give.

"I'm sorry," Emily said blushing with embarrassment.

"It's okay," Jason said quickly, "you didn't know."

"Emily where did you move here from?" Tanya asked quickly changing the subject.

"Reno," Emily answered. "My dad got a job offer in Stone Canyon and we found a house not far from here. When I heard we were moving here I was not happy. three is so much to do in Reno and Lake Tahoe. I thought Angel Grove would be boring. Then I saw the Power Rangers fighting monsters on TV and it no longer seemed so boring."

"I'd never call Angel Grove boring," Rocky said with a grin. "Between monsters and Bulk and Skull, there is never a dull moment."

As if on queue, Bulk and Skull walked by. Skull tripped over his own feet and crashed into Bulk causing them to both fall to the sand.

The Rangers and Emily laughed.

"Nothings changed," Tommy said shaking his head. "I think I may have missed Bulk and Skull."

"Now we know you were suffering from homesickness," Billy said joining them.

The Rangers were quite surprised to see Billy at the lake as he hardly ever left the Power Chamber since graduating high school early. They were, however, happy to see him.

Emily stood up. "Sorry guys but I have to go. I promised Ernie I would pick something up for him for tomorrow."

Jason jumped to his feet. "I'll go with you," he said and they walked away.

"They make such a cute couple," Kat said as she handed a sandwich to Billy.

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement.

"It's good for Jason," Adam said. "After he broke up with Trini..."

"Wait when did Jason break up with Trini?" Tommy asked in confusion. Last he heard from Jason, he and Trini had been going out but they weren't exclusive.

"When she was here this summer." Billy answered. "You did not know?"

"No."

Tommy knew it was no big thing. He didn't tell Jason everything. So it was no big deal that he didn't know. If that was the case, then he was glad that Jason and Emily might become a couple.

***

Later that afternoon, Tommy slung his backpack over his shoulder as he got out of his truck.

He walked into the house and started heading up the stairs when something caught his eye. Did he just see his parents mini van? He wondered.

"Tommy is that you?" his mother asked from the kitchen. Tommy took his communicator off and put it in his backpack.

"Yes." Tommy called back. He went into the kitchen and found his mother, Aunt Stephanie, and Cory sitting at the kitchen table. "Hey mom," Tommy said setting his backpack down, "what are you doing here?"

"Tommy put your backpack away." His mother instructed.

Tommy picked it up. He normally wouldn't have left it laying there but he wanted to be near his communicator in case Zordon called him. He took the backpack upstairs and put it in his room before returning to the kitchen. His mother stood up and gave him a hug.

"Mom what are you doing here?" He repeated.

"I came to see you of course. I missed you. Your dad had to work and couldn't make it. So how's school?"

"It's going okay."

"Karate? Are you keeping up your training?"

"I get to spar with Adam, Rocky, and Jason." And being a Ranger helps, he silently added. "How's your job?" His mother worked at a bank in Napa.

"It's going good. I saw Heidi Richardson and her mom at the bank the other day. Heidi said all of your friends at Vintage High School miss you."

Tommy smiled. He did miss Heidi, Norm, Michelle, Shea, and Ken but he was really glad to be back in Angel Grove. He was still sorry he didn't go up to Napa to take Heidi to the Homecoming Dance.

"How long are you and Cory staying?" He asked.

"We'll be leaving the day after tomorrow. That was all the time I could get off of work. I thought you could skip school tomorrow and we could do something."

"Sounds good." He said before glancing at his Aunt Stephanie who had a smile on her face.

"Josh has a jet ski contest this weekend," Stephanie said, "it's too bad you can't stay longer."

"I wish I could."

"Why don't we go to Ernie's new Beach Café?" Stephanie suggested. "Josh could meet us there. He's been so busy getting ready for the competition I hardly ever see him anymore."

"Growing up we hardly saw him either," Charlotte said with a laugh. "He was really into his dirt bike and skateboard."

"I'm going to get something from my room before we go," Tommy said before dashing up the stairs. He had just picked up his backpack when his communicator started going off. He looked down the stairs to make sure no one could hear him before he answered it. "I read you Zordon."

"TOMMY GASKET HAS SENT A MONSTER DOWN TO THE PARK. YOU NEED TO JOIN THE RANGERS."

"I'll be there as soon as I can." Tommy answered. He put his communicator down before going downstairs. "I'm sorry I can't go to the Beach Café. I just remembered I promised Jason I would study for a math test."

"But Tommy I'm sure Jason would understand," Stephanie said. "It's not as if you see your mother and brother every day."

"I know Aunt Stephanie but I have to go. I'll meet you guys at the Beach Café later." He turned to his mother who was looking at him skeptically. "I'm sorry." He said hurrying out of the house. He went back into the house and up the stairs to grab his backpack before leaving again.

As he drove to an isolated area, he wondered if his mother suspected what was really going on.


	8. Lying is the Hardest Part

Tommy sat in the living room waiting for his mother who was taking him out to breakfast. He had a feeling he knew what she wanted to talk about and he wasn't sure how he was going to answer her.

Charlotte came down the stairs still towel drying her hair. "I'll be ready to go in ten minutes."

"Okay," Tommy said glad for the extra time to think of what he was going to say.

Ten minutes later Charlotte came back into the room with keys in hand. "Cory went with Stephanie to her studio so let's go."

Tommy followed her out of the house and into her van. They drove to a diner.

They sat down at a table and gave their orders.

"So how are things going in school?"

"Good."

"I bet it wasn't easy returning to your old school."

Tommy didn't say anything right away as he didn't want to worry his mother. Since his first day back, he had been avoiding the stairwell that brought back memories of his abduction.

Charlotte reached across the table and squeezed his hand. "I'm sure it'll get easier."

"Yeah."

Charlotte looked around to make sure no one was within earshot before saying, "where were you yesterday?"

Tommy had known that question would come up again. "I was studying with Jason."

"Tommy," she said dropping her voice even lower. "On the news last night it showed the Power Rangers fighting a monster at the time you were studying with Jason. When your father and I agreed to let you attend your senior year in Angel Grove, we said you could not be a Power Ranger again."

Tommy really didn't like lying, but he said, "I'm not."

The waitress came back and set their breakfasts down on the table. "Do you need anything? Jelly? Ketchup?" She asked.

"No thank you," Charlotte and Tommy both answered.

The waitress walked away.

Tommy and Charlotte ate their breakfasts in silence for a few moments.

"I'm just worried about you," Charlotte finally said. "I'm worried about what happened to you last year will happen again."

"It won't," Tommy said this time hoping it was true, "I'll be okay."

That evening everyone was gather in the Rush's backyard for a barbecue. Earlier that day when his mother was picking up Cory, Tommy contacted Zordon asking that he only be contacted if necessary. Zordon agreed.

"So Josh," Charlotte said, "how is the training for the race going?"

"It's going great," Josh said. "The people running the race say they already have a lot of people signed up. That reminds me," he said turning to Tommy, "are you still interested in taking the wave runner after school Friday?"

"Definitely!"

"Can I ride it?" Cory asked.

"You are too young kiddo," Josh said ruffling his hair.

Stephanie went to the barbecue and came back with the corn on the cob and the shishkebobs. Everyone dug in.

"Tommy," Charlotte said as she cut up Cory's food, "have you spoken to David since coming back?"

A few months ago, David Truehart had gone to Napa looking for Tommy. He said he had found out Tommy had moved to Napa when he had gone to Angel Grove to find him. Tommy had been shocked to find out that he had an older brother. They had exchanged a few letters since the meeting.

"He was here last weekend with Sam." Sam was David's adopted grandfather. They both lived on a reservation twenty miles north of Angel Grove.

"That's good. Please say hello to me the next time you see him."

There was silence for a few minutes before Cory started talking about his kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Samuel. Charlotte then talked about one of her favorite customers at the bank and how much Ryan was enjoying teaching at the Police Academy.

Tommy was very happy that his communicator didn't sound once. The news report that night showed the Power Rangers fighting another of Gasket's robots. He hoped that would be enough to convince his mother.

Notes: I'm sure you can guess what's coming up next chapter.


	9. Troubled Waters

Tommy, Jason, and Kat walked down the path to Angel Grove Lake after school on Friday. Tommy was very excited about riding his uncle's WaveRunner. Jason and Kat had come along to watch.

"Glad you're here," Josh said as Tommy came up to him. I need to meet with one of the sponsors this afternoon but I still need you to take this out for a test run."

"I've been looking forward to this all day," Tommy said with a large grin on his face.

"Grab a life jacket and have fun," Josh said before leaving.

Tommy picked out a life jacket and strapped it on. He went over to the WaveRunner and got on.

Jason and Kat found an open table at the outdoor café that gave them a perfect view of the lake. Emily came over and sat with them.

"Is that Tommy out there?" Emily asked watching the WaveRunner race across the lake.

"Yeah. His uncle asked him to take the WaveRunner out for a test run." Jason answered. He was a little jealous watching his best friend on the lake. It looked like a lot of fun.

Jason and Katherine decided to follow Tommy to the other side of the lake.

* * *

Gasket stood not far away watching the Rangers. He couldn't understand how anyone could have fun on a dreadful lake. He'd show them how devastating water would be but first things first. He had to capture the Ranger to make his plans complete but how was he going to separate him from the others?

"Gasket," Prince Sprocket singsonged. "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" Gasket snapped. "I'm trying to capture the Red Ranger."

"Oh." Sprocket said, "well he's right over there," he said pointing to where the Red Ranger stood talking to the Pink and Gold Rangers.

"I can see that," Gasket said angrily. Sprocket annoyed him more then the Rangers did. "I need a clear shot at him. I don't want all three yet."

"You want me to distract them?"

"As tempting as that is, no." Gasket was glad when Jason moved away from his friends. Here was his chance. He raised his staff and fired at Jason.

* * *

Tommy turned around to tell Jason something. There was a bright flash of light and Jason was gone.

"Where'd he go?" Kat asked Tommy her eyes wide with shock.

Tommy looked around but could not see any trace of Jason. He felt a strange sense of deja. The same dejavu he felt when he was in the park. Something was very wrong.

"We better go to the Power Chamber," Tommy said. He took his life jacket off and put it on the WaveRunner. They made sure no one was around before they teleported to the Power Chamber.

* * *

Notes: I'm really excited about what's coming in a couple of chapters. I'm giving the Zeo season a different spin and I think you will enjoy my telling of it.


	10. Terrible Results

Tommy and Kat teleported to the Power Chamber. Tommy rushed to stand in front of Zordon after they landed.

"Zordon Jason's just disappeared from the lake," Tommy informed his mentor.

"ALPHA START SCANNING FOR JASON," Zordon instructed his assistant.

"Starting scan now," Alpha said pressing a button on the console.

Tommy sat on the edge of one of the consoles as they waited for the results of the scan. Kat sat next to him. He really did hate waiting.

"Ai yai yai!" Alpha exclaimed. "The scanners show that Jason is no longer on Earth."

Tommy stood up quickly. "Where is he?"

"I don't know. The scans do not say where he is." Alpha informed him.

"TOMMY AND KATHERINE YOU WILL NEED TO GO TO THE LAKE AND SCAN THE AREA HE WAS LAST SEEN," Zordon said. "THERE MAY BE RESIDUAL ENERGY THAT WE CAN USE TO TRACK HIS WHEREABOUTS."

There was a flash of light and a scanner appeared in Alpha's hands. Alpha handed the device to Tommy.

Without another word, Kat and Tommy teleported to the lake.

Tommy started to scan the lake.

* * *

Gasket watched them with interest. He knew he couldn't let them get the information they needed. That would ruin his plans. He sent Cogs down to keep the Rangers busy.

Tommy groaned. Not what they needed at this time. "It's Morphin time!" He yelled.

"Zeo Ranger 1, Pink!" Kat yelled.

"Gold Ranger Power!" Tommy yelled.

They started to fight the Cogs. The Cogs seemed more then determined to take out the scanner. That was more then enough confirmation for Tommy on that had caused Jason's disappearance.

Tommy tried to keep the Cogs from hitting the scanner out of his hands but it proved to be difficult. One of the Cogs got a lucky kick in and kicked the scanner right out of his hands. It fell to the ground shattered. The Cogs disappeared soon after. Tommy picked it up and discovered it was completely destroyed.

"We better get back to the Power Chamber," Tommy said as he joined Kat.

When they landed in the Power Chamber they found the other Zeo Rangers waiting.

"Zordon," Kat said, "the scanner was completely destroyed. What are we going to do now?"

"Here Tommy," Alpha said coming up to him, "let me see if I can repair it."

Tommy handed the scanner over to Alpha.

The alarms started to go off.

"RANGERS VIEW THE VIEWING SCREEN," Zordon instructed. They turned to view the screen and saw Tommy's Uncle Josh and his mechanic standing there. Also standing there was a strange looking robot.

"THIS IS CRUEL CHROME," Zordon informed them.

They watched as the robot blasted the two men with some kind of liquid. They fell to the ground unmoving.

"What did he hit them with?" Tommy asked turning to their mentor. He was very concerned about his uncle.

"I DO NOT KNOW TOMMY," Zordon said, "BUT THEY ONLY APPEAR TO BE STUNNED."

"We need to go down and stop them," Adam said. He turned to Tommy who nodded. "It's Morphin time!" He called.

"Zeo Ranger 2, Yellow!" Tanya yelled.

"Zeo Ranger 3, Blue!" Rocky yelled.

"Zeo Ranger 4, Green!" Adam yelled.

"Back to action," Tommy yelled and they teleported down to the lake.

Tanya and Kat helped Josh and the other man back to their feet. They ran away to safety.

"Hello Rangers," the robot said. "My name is Cruel Chrome and I am here to defeat you!"

"The only one who is going down is you Cruel Chrome," Tommy said moving to stand in front of the others.

"Big talk for a second rate substitute," Cruel Chrome, said with a laugh. "Too bad your real leader isn't around anymore."

"Where is he?" Kat demanded.

"That's nothing for you to worry about," Cruel Chrome said still laughing. Suddenly he grew in proportions.

"What are we going to do?" Adam asked. "We need Jason so he can call his Zord," he said into his communicator.

"RANGERS," Zordon responded, "ALPHA IS SENDING THE RED BATTLEZORD TO YOU. IT MAY BE COTROLLED REMOTELY."

"Great Zordon," Tommy answered as they called their zords.

After a short fight, they were able to defeat Cruel Chrome. They however were no closer to finding Jason.

Gasket watched the fight from the Moon. He thought for sure the Rangers would fall without their leader. He had underestimated the Rangers especially the Gold Ranger. It was time to continue with phase two of his plan.

* * *

After morphing back to their civilian clothes, Tommy and Kat scanned the lake with the scanner that Alpha had fixed. After completing the scan they teleported back to the Power Chamber to await the results both hoping that they had retrieved enough information.

"I am picking up brainwaves," Alpha informed them. "They could be Jason's…" he started to say. "But wait they are changing."

Tommy went very pale. Kat set a hand on his shoulder though she didn't really know the reason behind that.

"What does that mean?" Kat asked Zordon not removing her hand from Tommy's shoulder.

Zordon looked down at both Rangers grimly. "AT THE RATE THEY ARE CHANGING, JASON WON'T BE JASON MUCH LONGER."

Tommy looked up at Zordon and shook his head wanting him to say it wouldn't happen. Zordon looked down at him and then looked away. He had gone through his own change in brain chemistry that long ago. He couldn't believe this was happening to Jason.


	11. Bad Time for a Power Outage

Notes: This fic is well plotted out; I just have to get there. Expect the unexpected is my only advice for the future parts. Some dialogue in this chapter is from King for a Day Part 1. Talk about a different twist on that ep .

Kat, Tanya, Adam, and Rocky sat at a table in the Youth Center watching Tommy work out with a bag. Zordon had instructed them all to go home saying there was nothing else they could do for Jason at this point, as they could not track the brainwaves or determine if they were in fact Jason's. They had all gone their separate ways and decided to meet up at the Youth Center the next morning. When they had gotten there they found Tommy already working out.

"I've never seen him like this," Tanya said as she took a sip of her smoothie.

Rocky looked around to make sure no one was around before saying, "you and Kat never did hear about why Tommy stopped being a Ranger did you?" They shook their heads. "The day Angel Grove High burned down Tommy was kidnapped from the school and replaced. We all thought he had died. Turns out Zedd and Rita were erasing his memory and making him into their Gray Ranger. It turns out they also changed his brain chemistry and he had a lot of problems with his memory after he remembered everything. It's killing him to know that the same thing might be happening to Jason."

"Oh," Kat said looking at Tommy in concern. "That would explain his reaction in the Power Chamber yesterday. I thought he was in shock."

"Probably was," Adam said watching as Tommy hit the bag one more time as hard as he could.

Ernie walked up to Tommy.

"Everything all right Tommy?" He asked. He was very concerned about the teen. He hadn't seen him this worked up about something in years.

"Yeah," he said. "I'm just working out."

"So I see." He said with a nod. "If you need to talk let me know." He said before walking over to a twelve year old who had just entered the Youth Center.

Bulk and Skull entered the Youth Center looking smug about something. They walked past Tommy without giving him a second glance and stood in the middle of the room.

"You guys are never going to believe what we saw," Bulk said getting everyone's attention.

"What did you see?" A young kid asked coming up to them.

"We were at the lake and we saw something so amazing," Bulk continued. "We saw Zeo Ranger 5."

"What?" Tommy asked in mid punch.

"You saw Zeo Ranger 5?" Rocky asked.

"Yep. Saw him with our own eyes." Skull bragged.

"What was he doing?" Tommy asked.

"He was just standing there staring," Bulk said soaking up the attention. "The weird thing is we could see right through him."

"Kinda creepy huh?" Skull said to the young kid.

The other Rangers walked over to Tommy. "What do you think?" Tanya answered.

"I think we should go to the lake," Kat said.

"No we probably should talk to Zordon," Adam said.

Tommy hadn't said anything.

They hurried out of the Youth Center, made sure no one could see them, and teleported out.

* * *

"Zordon," Tommy said as soon as they arrived in the Power Chamber. "Bulk and Skull said they saw Zeo Ranger 5 at the lake."

"ALPHA START ANOTHER SCAN OF THE LAKE," Zordon instructed.

The Rangers turned and watched as data flashed on the screen as Alpha scanned the lake. None of them saw anything.

"I don't see anything!" Tanya exclaimed.

There was a beep. "The brainwaves are showing up again," Alpha said. "They could be Jason's but like before they are changing."

Zordon's face became grim. "RANGERS IF THESE ARE INDEED JASON'S BRAINWAVES HE IS IN GRAVE DANGER. AT THE RATE THEY ARE CHANGING, JASON WON'T BE JASON MUCH LONGER."

"That's not going to happen," Tommy said to his mentor. He couldn't let this happen to Jason. "I'm going down to the lake."

"I'll go with you," Kat volunteered.

Tommy nodded and they teleported down to the lake.

They looked around but didn't see anything. What had Bulk and Skull seen? He wondered.

"There's no sign of him," Kat said as she looked around the lake.

"Let's keep looking," Tommy said. "I can't let what happened to me happen to Jason."

Kat laid a hand on his shoulder. She could tell this was tearing Tommy up. "We will find him."

They continued to search the perimeter of the lake. "What if Bulk and Skull were lying?" Tommy wondered out loud. It wouldn't have been the first time.

There was a bright flash of light. "Tommy look!" Kat called.

Tommy turned and saw Jason standing there in his Zeo Ranger 5 suit.

"Help me," Jason said motioning with his hands. The pain in his voice had Tommy running to him.

"Wait Tommy!" Kat called. "I don't think its Jason!"

Tommy kept running. As soon as Tommy got a better look he realized Jason was transparent. It was a trap!

He tried to run away but he was sucked into a portal and disappeared.

* * *

Tommy landed hard on the dirt ground. He stood up and looked around. Monsters surrounded him. He turned around slowly trying to take everything in. "Where am I?" He asked.

"Surrender Gold Ranger!" A deep and very familiar voice said.

Tommy turned around quickly and saw Jason standing there morphed in the Red Ranger costume. He felt a very strong sense of dejavu. He hoped things weren't how they looked.

"Jason?" He asked his voice barely audible. No it couldn't be Jason. Gasket had to be tricking him.

The Red Ranger didn't answer.

"Where's Jason Gasket?" Tommy asked.

"Welcome to my arena," The Red Ranger said.

He sounds just like Jason. Tommy realized this wasn't a trick. There was no denying it. It was Jason.

Jason continued, "you will surrender to me or you will fight."

"Jason what's wrong with you?" Tommy asked moving closer.

"You can not speak to the King this way," Gasket snapped.

"King?" Tommy asked in confusion. What did he mean King?

"I can handle this Gasket. It seems I am not the only one who has a memory problem. I am the King of the Machine Empire and I plan to rid the universe of the Power Rangers. If you surrender to me, I will spare your life. If you refuse, you will have to fight the best warrior." His voice was as cold as it was when he was the Gray Ranger.

"Jase listen to me. Gasket's tricking you. You're not the King you're a..."

"Enough of this my king," Gasket said cutting him off. "Do not listen to him. He is just trying to trick you into sparing his life."

Jason nodded. "Send out our best warrior."

Tommy turned away from Jason and watched as a gold robot entered the Arena. The Monsters around him were cheering.

Tommy flicked his wrists and his zeonizers did not appear. He tried again and nothing happened. He was screwed.

"Ninja Ranger Power!" He called using the one power he had used when he went out to face Rita. Though that wouldn't really help him in a fight against a Robot.

There was a flash of white light and he was in his Ninjetti costume.

Gasket made a sound that Tommy couldn't quite decipher. He decided Gasket was not happy about that trick that Tommy still had up his sleeve.

Tommy turned to the robot and started to fight him. It was a back and forth fight. Tommy was surprised that the robot could match all of his moves. The moves were also very familiar.

He hit the ground with a thud pain going through his chest. Tommy was able to grab the staff, as he seemed to know just exactly what the Robot was going to do. It all made sense now.

"You transferred Jason's powers into this gold goon didn't you Gasket?" Tommy asked between gasps for air.

"I don't know what you are talking about." Gasket singsonged.

Tommy used the staff to get to his feet. "Jase is that you?"

The monster didn't answer.

"Bro?" He asked again. Thinking maybe Gasket had switched Jason's mind for the robot.

"I'm Altor!" Altor yelled.

"Good, then you aren't Jason." He said and hit him with the staff. He had to move out of the way of the blast.

He could feel his Ninjetti powers starting to weaken. They weren't really meant for huge fights. That's what morphing was for.

This was not going to go well at all.

"Your plan failed Gasket." Tommy said throwing down the staff. "Let Jason go!"

"What are you talking about Gold Ranger? He's not a prisoner."

"Are you ready to surrender Gold Ranger? Or is it White Ranger?"

"No I do not surrender."

"Then you and I will fight."

"Jason you have to listen to me. You are not the King. You are my best friend. Gasket's brainwashed you. You need to fight this."

Jason turned to Gasket. "I'm ready," he said and the next moment he was in front of Tommy.

Tommy's powers decided then to give out.


	12. Don't You Remember?

The Rangers stood in the Power Chamber watching the fight between Tommy and Jason in shock. None of them could believe this was happening.

"This is unbelievable," Rocky said shaking his head. He had never really seen Jason and Tommy fight each other. There was the time that Tommy was the Gray Ranger but somehow that seemed different. Both of them were morphed during their battles. Tommy was helpless against Jason and the Machine Empire. Just like he had been when Jason was the Gray Ranger.

"What can we do?" Kat asked. "Tommy's got to defend himself."

"How," Tanya asked, "he has no powers and he's surrounded by the Machine Empire."

"He's done it before," Billy said remembering the times he had fought with low powers or no powers at all.

"RANGERS," Zordon spoke up, "WE MUST MOVE QUICKLY TO FIND THE COORDINATES THAT WILL SEND YOU TO GASKET'S ARENA."

"I'll help Billy and Alpha," Adam volunteered.

The other Rangers went back to watching the fight on the viewing globe.

* * *

Tommy pulled himself painfully back to his feet. He quickly moved to block Jason's next move. Jason's next blow attempt hit him hard in the hand. Tommy tried to hide the pain and fought the urge to grab his hand. He knew he had to fight with one hand in order to protect his finger. Usually during a fight he had the Gold Ranger Powers to protect his finger. He was happy that Jason didn't have his sword.

"Jason listen to me," Tommy said blocking another attack.

"I'm not going to listen to any more of your lies," Jason declared. He hit him hard in the head.

Tommy fell back and put a hand to his head when he felt something start to go down his face. It was blood. This was not good.

* * *

In the Power Chamber, Kat grimaced before turning to face Billy, Alpha, and Adam. "Do you have a lock yet?"

"Just about," Adam answered.

There was a noise from one of the consoles. Rocky and Tanya turned their attention to the others.

Alpha read through the information that was displayed and said, "This is it!"

"RANGERS," Zordon said, "YOU NEED TO MORPH AND TELEPORT TO THE LAKE. WE WILL TELEPORT YOU AS SOON AS WE HAVE THE COORDINATES IN THE SYSTEM. IT IS BEST THAT YOU LEAVE FROM THE SAME PLACE THAT TOMMY AND JASON DID."

The Rangers morphed and teleported to the lake.

* * *

Tommy once again pulled himself to his feet. He was getting really tired. He wasn't sure how long he could keep going.

"Are you ready to give up Gold Ranger," Jason asked.

"Never," Tommy said breathing hard. He didn't need to look to see that his shirt was in shreds and that his pants were covered in dirt.

There was a bright flash of light bringing the other Zeo Rangers to Gasket's Arena.

"Tommy are you okay?" Kat asked as she and the others hurried over to Tommy.

"I'm okay," Tommy answered. "But we've got to help Jason. He thinks we're his enemies."

"We know," Rocky answered as he and Adam stepped in front of Tommy to allow him to catch his breath.

Jason stood there watching them intently. "More Rangers?" He asked in disgust.

Gasket stood in the box behind Jason. He was furious. This was not going according to his plan. He did not want all of the Zeo Rangers there at the same time.

"How fitting," Archerina said from next to him, "they are going to be destroyed by their own leader."

Gasket nodded. He hadn't thought of it that way but she was right. Jason was under his control and he would destroy his friends.

The Rangers struggled against Jason not wanting to hurt him. Jason, however, did not extend the same courtesy.

Tommy moved to join the Rangers and was knocked down when Tanya fell into him.

"There's got to be a way to get through to him," Tommy said when the Rangers regrouped.

"How?" Rocky asked. "When he was the Grey Ranger he only snapped out of it when Zedd ordered him to kill you in the hospital," he reminded him.

Tanya and Kat exchanged looks. They had never heard about that.

Jason took a momentary step back. Tommy, who had been watching Jason, took this as a good sign. It was very possible that Jason had heard that. He decided to use a different tactic.

"After he had cut off my finger, I didn't know what else he would do."

Tanya and Kat exchanged another look. There was so much they didn't know about the history of the team.

"You are my enemy," Jason said though his voice faltered a little. "I have to rid the universe of the Power Rangers."

"Are you sure Jason?" Tommy asked. "You've been a Ranger longer then any of us."

"Do not listen to him Sire," Gasket called from the box. "He's just trying to trick you into sparing his life."

"No Jason," Tommy said, "Gasket's the one trying to trick you. You didn't let Zedd win when he tried to make you kill me.

Jason looked down at Tommy's hand. Tommy took that as a sign that maybe he was starting to remember things.

Jason looked up quickly. "I don't know what you are talking about. I'm through talking!" He charged at the Rangers.

Adam and Rocky moved to stand in front of Tommy but Tommy put himself in the path of Jason. He knew this was probably crazy but he was willing to try anything at the moment. He held up his hand ready to block whatever Jason was about to do. Jason stopped for a moment and stared at him. Or more importantly, he was staring at Tommy's finger. Tommy really hoped his plan was not about to go up in smoke.

* * *

Jason stared wearily at the hand. He looked down at his own hand remembering a long time ago that he had stuck his hand out in friendship to him but that couldn't be right. The Gold Ranger was his enemy. It had to be a trick like Gasket said. Tommy was just trying to get him to spare his life. He was not going to fall for it.

_"You give up." _

He heard himself standing in front of a home with a monkey with wings and someone made out of just bones.

_"No." The Ranger said._

_There was a flash of light and something appeared in Tommy's hands. Jason looked at him and saw it was the Tiger Zord morpher. That was his morpher. How dare Zordon give it back to Tommy? Tommy didn't want it._

Jason shook his head. Morpher? What morpher? What did he need with this evil person's morpher and who was Zordon.

_"It's Morph..." The other started to say._

_Jason moved quickly. He would make sure Tommy didn't get the morpher. He lunged at Tommy with the sword and grabbed the morpher with the sword. He felt something cut away and saw it was Tommy's finger. He looked at all the blood on the ground with satisfaction._

_Tommy and Jason locked eyes for a moment before Jason picked up the morpher and the finger. The morpher was damaged which made Jason angry. That was not his intention. Jason dropped the morpher to the ground and watched, as Tommy and the morpher were teleported away._

"What was that?" He demanded snapping back to attention.

"What was what?" Adam asked.

Adam. No how did he know Adam's name? Why would he know his enemy's name? Something was wrong here. They had done something to him when his attention was diverted.

"I will not fall for your tricks!" Jason declared again. You will not trick me!"

"We are not tricking you," Tanya said stepping forward. "Jason we are your friends. We are here to help you."

Tanya? No that couldn't be right.

Jason's head started to pound as another image appeared in his head.

_"__I don't want to be the White Ranger."_

_"Why not?" Kimberly finally spoke up._

_"It's not mine. It's Jason's."_

_"And I'm giving them back." He said holding it towards him. "I only took the powers because Zordon asked me to. I never expected to keep them when you came back."_

He was remembering Kimberly now. This was right before he was kidnapped by Zedd.

That couldn't be right. He had never been a Ranger! The Rangers were the ones trying to destroy the Universe.

He fell to the ground holding his head in pain. Memories were coming back so quickly he could not even begin to understand them.

"What is wrong with me?" He asked standing up.

Jason stared at the Rangers with his Zeo Pistol pointed at Tommy.

"What are you doing my King?" Gasket thundered. "They are your enemies. Destroy them!"

Everything became crystal clear to Jason and he looked at the Rangers in front of him. Tommy was standing there watching him. On one side was Tanya and Rocky and on the other side were Adam and Kat. They were all watching him. He could only see one face and that was Tommy's. Tommy was looking at him with pure determination.

There was a noise and Jason turned around to see Gasket standing behind him.

"Fight them!" Gasket yelled.

"I don't think so Gasket." Jason said. "These are my friends and I'm not going to destroy them. And we are leaving."

He stood back so that he was standing next to Tommy. He didn't even want to look at the blood flowing from the wounds on Tommy's arms.

"Try it." He challenged.

They brought up their morphers and all they got was static.

"You cannot teleport out. My force field is firmly in place again. This is the end Power Rangers."

The other robots in the arena soon joined gasket.

The Zeo Rangers prepared for a fight. There was a noise and suddenly the force field disappeared.

"Let's get out of here," Tanya said.

"We'll meet again Gasket," Jason promised.

"You can count on it."

They were gone in a flash of light.

Ddd

Notes: A lot of the dialogue from this chapter came from King for a Day Part 2 and a few scenes were borrowed from my fic Faded. I had to make quite a few changes as Finster is on another planet far away from Zedd and can't give Zedd ideas on how to fix things ;).


	13. Competition

Tommy stood in the Power Chamber allowing Alpha to scan him for any major injuries. Normally he would have protested but right now he was too tired to care.

Jason was standing across from him being checked out by Billy. Neither of them had had spoken since escaping Gasket's Arena. The other Zeo Rangers were standing in the center of the Power Chamber.

"You'll be okay Tommy," Alpha said after finishing the scan. "You might be sore for a couple of days and you may have a scar later, but you'll be fine."

Jason looked away.

"Jason's going to be fine also," Billy, said. "Whatever Gasket did to him, it's gone."

Zordon nodded before saying, "RANGERS IT'S GETTING LATE. I SUGGEST ALL OF YOU GO HOME AND GET SOME REST." He turned his attention to Tommy. There was a flash of light and a change of clothes appeared on a console.

Tommy smiled gratefully at Zordon before leaving to change. He changed and teleported out of the Power Chamber.

When he arrived home he found his aunt in the kitchen making dinner. He tried to slip by her and up the stairs.

"Tommy come in here a second," she called.

Tommy went into the kitchen.

"Here try this," she said turning around with a spoonful of some type of sauce. "I…" she stopped. "What happened to your face?"

"I was sparring with Jason and he accidentally hit me in the face," Tommy said. That was about as close as he was going to get to the truth. He took the spoon and tasted the sauce. "It tastes great."

"Good. I thought maybe I put too much basil in the sauce. Dinner will be ready in ten minutes. Josh is on his way home."

"I'm going to wash up."

He walked up the stairs to the upstairs bathroom. He took one look at his face and cringed. Now he knew what Stephanie was talking about. He took a shower trying not to look at the cuts and bruises that were all over his body. Alpha was right. He hurt just looking at all of it.

After his shower he changed back into his clothes and headed down the stairs. He was really tired but he didn't want to concern his aunt and uncle by skipping dinner. He was sure they would tell his parents and he already knew his mother was suspicious that he was a Power Ranger again.

He helped Josh set the table and then sat down and started eating. He was starving. He hadn't had anything since breakfast and he had gotten a lot of exercise in Gasket's Arena.

"Are you ready for the race tomorrow?" Tommy asked.

"Ready as I'll ever be. There haven't been any major problems that I know of," he said. "Everyone's really gearing up for the race. I do have a favor to ask Tommy. Two of the volunteers backed out. I need someone to help set up for the race. You think you and Jason can lend a hand?"

"I'd have to ask Jason but I think he'll help. I'll call him right now." Tommy said standing up.

He went to the phone in the kitchen and called Jason.

"Hello?" Elizabeth Scott asked.

"Hi Mrs. Scott, it's Tommy. Is Jason home?"

"Hello Tommy. Yes he's right here." There was a brief pause and some whispering before Jason came on the phone.

"Hello?"

"My Uncle is short a couple of volunteers for tomorrow's race. Can you help set up?"

"Sure." He answered his voice a little flat.

"Tell him he'll need to be at the lake at seven," Josh said.

"You'll need to be at the lake at seven," Tommy said to Jason.

"Okay. Bye." He said and hung up.

Tommy frowned. He had known things might be a little strained but he wasn't quite ready for that. "He can help," he said as he hung up the phone.

The rest of the dinner conversation that night was about the race. After Tommy helped clean up the dishes he went up to his room. He was exhausted and had to get up early. Tomorrow was going to be interesting.

* * *

Tommy rode with his aunt and uncle to the lake the next morning. When they arrived at the lake they found there were about a dozen people already starting to set up. Josh pulled his car into a parking spot and they all got out. Detective Stone walked up to them.

"It looks like a nice turn out," Detective Stone said nodding at the participants who were unloading their WaveRunners into the lake.

"It does," Josh said agreeing. "Maybe we can make it a yearly competition."

Tommy spotted a group setting up the tables near the lake. "I better go help," he said and walked over.

"Tommy glad you could make it," Mark Carson said. "We are a bit short handed today. Race starts in two hours and I don't think anything's set up yet."

"Where can I help?" He asked.

"If you could help Jason with setting up the judges table I'd appreciate it."

Tommy went over to where Jason was carrying a table from the back of a truck.

"Hey bro you need a hand with the table?" Tommy asked joining him.

Jason jumped. "Oh sure," he said.

Tommy took one end of the table and helped Jason carry it to where Mark had directed. They worked quietly on setting up other tables and taping off the areas for the spectators to watch the competition.

"How are you doing?" Tommy asked Jason who had been quiet all morning.

"I'm fine," Jason said. "How are you doing?"

"I'm okay. Not even sore," Tommy said thought that wasn't quite true. He wasn't completely sure how he rolled out of bed this morning. His body felt like he had been run over by a truck but he wasn't going to tell Jason that. Things were strange enough at the moment.

"Hey you guys," Kat said as she, Rocky, Adam, and Tanya joined them.

"Hi Kat," Tommy said.

There was silence for a moment. Thankfully for all of the Rangers, the competition began.

The Rangers sat on blankets close to the water's edge watching the WaveRunners race by in practice laps. Billy joined them a few minutes before the competition started. It was an exciting race as Josh came in first, Detective Stone came in second and Aaron Anderson, who was from out of town, came in third. The Rangers got up and went over to congratulate Ryan after the competition.

"Congratulations Mr. Rush," Jason said with a smile.

"Thanks Jason and thank you for helping set up. From what I saw you and Tommy worked hard today. I'm glad we had volunteers because I don't think the race would have started on time or gone as well without them."

One of the judges, Mack Johnston, came up to them. "Ernie's giving out free smoothies to all of the competitors and volunteers at his Beach Café," he said. "Good race by the way Josh. I thought for sure Stone was going to win until the last second."

"Thanks," Josh said with a grin. "The race was close. I wasn't sure if I was going to win either. Thanks for the info about Ernie's. I'm going to go find Stephanie and we'll both head over. Tommy are you coming with us?" He asked.

"I need to stay and cleanup."

"Actually," Mack said, "we have a different set of volunteers that are going to do the clean up. I think we were just short on people to set up today."

Suddenly their communicators went off.

Beep beep beep beep beep

"I better meat you there," Tommy said to his uncle. "I forgot I had something to take care of."

"No problem Tommy," Josh said. "We'll see you there." He said before walking off to find Stephanie.

The Rangers walked to a secluded stop before Jason answered the call.

"We read you Zordon," he said.

"RANGERS. GASKET HAS SENT DOWN A MONSTER TO THE PARK." Zordon informed them.

"We are on it," Jason answered. They took another look around before Jason called, "it's Morphin' Time!"

"Zeo Ranger 1, Pink!" Kat called.

"Zeo Ranger 2, Yellow!" Tanya called.

"Zeo Ranger 3, Blue!" Rocky called.

"Zeo Ranger 4, Green!" Adam called.

"Zeo Ranger 5, Red!" Jason called.

"Gold Ranger Power!" Tommy called.

Once they were morphed, they teleported to the fight

* * *

The fight was a long fight and they were able to defeat the monster with their Zords. After the fight, they morphed back to their regular clothes.

Tommy looked at his watch, "I think Ernie's still serving smoothies if we hurry."

"We can always blame you for being late," Rocky said good-naturedly. "Your Aunt and Uncle are used to it by now right?"

"Funny," Tommy said with a grin.

"You guys go without me," Jason said. "I forgot I told my mom I would clean the garage today."

"Are you sure Jason?" Tanya asked. "I'm sure your mom will understand."

"No I better go. I'll see you guys." Jason said before walking away.

Tommy watched him walk away. Tommy wondered if things would ever not being weird between them.


	14. Dejavu?

Notes: This is my own take on A Brief Mystery of Time. Some lines may be similar but I just had to give it my own twist.

Tommy rolled out of bed the next morning with a groan. His whole body hurt. He took a shower hoping that it would help his aching body. It did help a little. He went downstairs into the kitchen.

"You ready for the big test?" Stephanie asked as he came into the room.

Tommy shrugged. "As ready as I'll ever be." He was glad he had studied last week because he had forgotten about the test with all the sanity of the weekend.

"Good," Stephanie said with a smile. "Help yourself to cereal. I need to get to the studio. Josh will probably sleep all morning." She finished her cup of coffee. "Good luck with the test," she said before leaving.

Tommy poured cereal into the bowl and ate it. He was still feeling stiff as he drove to school.

When he got to his locker he found Kat at her own locker. Jason came up to them as Tommy hit his locker. It was an old trick that he and Jason knew for opening stuck lockers. This, however, turned out to be a stupid idea as pain flared through his arm. He hadn't even used his bad hand.

"Hey Jase," Tommy greeted with a smile. "You ready for the big test?"

"I guess," he said with a shrug. "How about you guys?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," Tommy answered.

They walked to Mrs. Applebee's classroom where they found Rocky already at his desk. Kat, Tommy, and Jason took their seats. Mrs. Applebee came in and handed out the test.

Tommy watched as Rocky looked for a pencil and then borrowed one from Mrs. Applebee. It was nice to see someone else be forgetful for once.

Tommy barely finished the last question when the bell rang indicating the class was over. Twenty-five weary students filed out of the classroom.

"At least it's over," Rocky said as they walked to their next classes. "We won't have to take that kind of test again in high school."

They all nodded in agreement.

* * *

After school that day the Rangers met at the Youth Center.

"That test was hard," Rocky said as he sat down in a chair next to Adam.

"Tell me about it," Tanya agreed. "Adam and I took it last week."

"At least it's the last time we take it," Jason said as he sat down next to Tanya. Tommy and Kat sat at the table next to them.

There was an explosion of soda at the Juice Bar. They all turned around to see Bulk covered in soda. They all laughed.

Jason's laughter died down as he looked at his watch. "I better go," he said as he gathered his things. He started to leave and Tommy followed.

"We need to talk," Tommy said putting a hand on Jason's shoulder. Jason shrugged it off.

"Some other time," Jason said. I need to get home to finish the garage."

Tommy was not going to give up so easily. "I'll help. We'll get it done twice as fast."

"I don't need any help. I'll call you when I'm finished and we'll talk," he said and walked away.

Jason didn't call.

* * *

When Tommy got to his locker he found Kat at her own locker. Jason came up to them as Tommy hit his locker. It was an old trick that he and Jason knew for opening stuck lockers. This, however, turned out to be a stupid idea as pain flared through his arm. He hadn't even used his bad hand.

"Hey Jase," Tommy greeted with a smile. "You ready for the big test?"

"I guess," he said with a shrug. "How about you guys?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," Tommy answered.

Jason looked a bit confused. "Didn't we just…" he shook his head. "Never mind I guess I'm just worried about the test."

They walked to Mrs. Applebee's classroom where they found Rocky already at his desk. Kat, Tommy, and Jason took their seats. Mrs. Applebee came in and handed out the test.

Tommy watched as Rocky looked for a pencil and then borrowed one from Mrs. Applebee. It was nice to see someone else be forgetful for once.

* * *

"That test was hard," Rocky said as he sat down in a chair next to Adam.

"Tell me about it," Tanya agreed. "Adam and I took it last week."

"At least it's the last time we take it," Jason said as he sat down next to Tanya. Tommy and Kat sat at the table next to them.

There was an explosion of soda at the Juice Bar. They all turned around to see Bulk covered in soda. They all laughed except Jason who just stared at Bulk and Skull.

"You okay Jason?" Kat asked.

"I've had this feeling all day that we've done this before.

"Sure last year," Rocky joked.

"No I mean today."

"Everyone has a feeling of dejavu every once in awhile," Tanya said. "I wouldn't worry about it."

"I guess." Jason said.

Jason looked at his watch. "I gotta go," he said grabbing his things. He started to leave.

Tommy followed behind him. "We need to talk," he said placing a hand on Jason's shoulder. Jason shrugged it off.

"Some other time," Jason said his voice trailing off. "And I don't need your help," he said before leaving.

Tommy was left standing there in shock. What was Jason talking about?

* * *

When Tommy got to his locker he found Kat at her own locker.

"Here let me get that," Jason said as he intervened before Tommy could hit his locker with an old trick he and Jason knew to open the locker. Jason hit it and it popped open.

"Thanks Jase," Tommy said in surprise.

"Sure no problem," Jason said.

Tommy inwardly sighed with relief. Maybe things were getting better between him and Jason. They walked to Mrs. Applebee's classroom.

They walked to Mrs. Applebee's classroom where they found Rocky already at his desk. Kat, Tommy, and Jason took their seats. Mrs. Applebee came in and handed out the test.

Tommy watched as Rocky looked for a pencil. Jason handed him a pencil.

"Thanks how did you…" he started to ask but Mrs. Applebee frowned at him as she put a test down in front of him.

* * *

The Rangers were sitting at their usual table in the Youth Center.

"That test was hard," Rocky said as he sat down in a chair next to Adam.

"Tell me about it," Tanya agreed. "Adam and I took it last week."

Jason was quiet during the conversation. He finally said, "this has all happened before."

"What has?" Adam asked.

"Today," Jason answered. "It's like we are reliving today over and over again."

"Everyone has a feeling of dejavu every once in awhile," Tanya said. "I wouldn't worry about it."

"I'm serious," Jason answered. He turned his attention to the Juice Bar where Ernie was serving Bulk and Skull sodas. "I'll show you what I mean. Any second Skull is going to shake up Bulk's drink and Bulk is going to be sprayed with soda.

There was an explosion of soda at the Juice Bar. They watched as Bulk was sprayed with soda and they all laughed, everyone except Jason that is.

"See what I mean?" He asked. Before any of his friends could protest he continued. "Rocky remember when I handed you a pencil before the test? You had forgotten your pencil two times before and had to borrow a pencil from Mrs. Applebee. I'm telling you there's something going on here."

Tommy's voice dropped low. "Maybe we should go talk to Zordon about this."

They got up and walked to the quiet corner that they always teleported to the Power Chamber.

"Rangers!" Alpha exclaimed as they arrived in the Power Chamber. "So nice of you to drop in for a visit. Just passing time?"

"You have no idea how right you are," Jason said. "Today's been repeating itself."

"That's funny," Alpha said. "We haven't detected anything."

"Jason seems to be the only one to notice," Kat explained.

"PERHAPS JASON'S RECENT EXPERIENCE WITH GASKET'S BRAIN DRAIN HAS LEFT HIM SENSITIVE TO CHANGES IN THE SPACE TIME CONTINUUM," Zordon suggested.

"I'll run a scan," Alpha said as he teleported a scanner into the Power Chamber. He quickly performed a scan.

"THIS SCAN CONFIRMS IT," Zordon said once the scan was finished. "JASON'S CHANGE IN BRAIN CHEMISTRY MAKES HIM SENSITIVE TO SLIGHT CHANGES IN THE SPACE TIME CONTINUUM."

"Sorry we doubted you," Rocky said.

Tommy frowned. He hadn't noticed anything.

"Ai yai yai!' Alpha exclaimed. "Today's brain wave scan show abnormalities show what appear to be a time loop."

"I HAVE TRIANGULATED THE SOURCE OF THE TIME TAMPERING PHENOMENON. OBSERVE THE VIEWING GLOBE."

The Rangers turned their attention to the viewing globe where they saw

"I don't see anything," Adam said.

"Look there!" Jason said pointing at the viewing globe.

Adam squinted at the screen. "I don't see anything."

Alpha managed to get inside of the time loop and they found a ship that was ready to attack them on the other side.

"RANGERS YOU MUST GO DOWN AND DESTROY IT SO THAT TIME MAY RETURN TO NORMAL." Zordon instructed.

"It's morphin time!" Jason yelled.

"Zeo Ranger 1, Pink!" Kat called.

"Zeo Ranger 2, Yellow!" Tanya called.

"Zeo Ranger 3, Blue!" Rocky called.

"Zeo Ranger 4, Green!" Adam called.

"Zeo Ranger 5, Red!" Jason called.

"Gold Ranger Power!" Tommy called.

They went down to inspect the crystal ball type object.

Tommy reached down to pick it up when he was fired at.

A monster appeared before them. They fought the monster and defeated it with their Zeo Zords.

After the fight they morphed back to their regular clothes and returned to the Youth Center.

Jason looked at his watch and said, "I have to go. I need to finish the garage." He started to walk away and was not surprised when he found a hand on his shoulder. He changed his mind. "We can talk if you want to help clean."

Tommy smiled. "Sounds like a deal." They left the Youth Center.

* * *

Notes: I stink at Zord fights and if you really want to see it, you can check out A Brief Mystery of Time on youtube. The conversation that Jason and Tommy have to have is coming up next chapter. I think a little less drama the next two chapters might be nice considering the s- hasn't quite hit the fan yet.


	15. A Much Needed Talk

Tommy followed Jason to his house glad that Jason was willing to talk to him. They needed to talk about what had happened in Gasket's Arena. Even if a part of Tommy didn't want to talk about it.

"Hello Tommy," Elizabeth Scott greeted as Jason and Tommy entered the Scott home. "How are you?" She asked.

"I'm doing good. How are you?"

"Fine, thank you. Jason you still need to finish the garage," Elizabeth said turning to her son. She turned back to Tommy. "I'm sorry Tommy but Jason promised he'd finish it today."

"That's okay Mrs. Scott," Tommy said with a smile. "I told Jason I'd help him."

"That was very nice of you," Mrs. Scott said to Tommy as she gave Jason a look. "I insist that you stay for dinner then."

"Thanks Mrs. Scott. I'll just need to let my aunt and uncle know."

Elizabeth nodded and the boys went down to the Scott's garage.

Tommy stood in the doorway surveying the room. "I thought you weren't serious about the garage."

Jason chuckled. "Yeah. I don't think it's been cleaned since I went to Switzerland. It was a lot worse yesterday."

They worked in silence for several minutes before Tommy broke the silence.

"We need to talk about what happened Saturday."

"I don't want to talk about it Tommy," Jason answered.

"We need to talk about it," Tommy insisted.

Jason sighed as he sorted one of the boxes of old clothing. His mother had asked him to sort through it to determine what was in good enough shape to be given to Saint Vincent's De Paul. Most of the clothes were clothes that Jason had outgrown a long time ago. His mother was not good at throwing things out or donating them.

"Hey I know what you are going through. I went through it when I was the Green Ranger and Gray Ranger."

"You didn't hurt anyone when you were Rita's Ranger or the Gray Ranger," Jason reminded him nodding towards the many bruises on Tommy's face. A Band-Aid covered the worst one. Tommy hadn't wanted people asking questions about it at school.

"I'm okay though Jason. The bruises and aches will go away in time."

"You weren't fine after I cut off your finger," Jason shot back. "You still aren't fine. I know you were favoring that hand during the fight," Jason snorted. "Fight. You didn't even fight back. You fought back when I was the Gray Ranger. Why?"

Tommy looked up from the ground where he was picking up newspapers. Tommy wasn't sure he had an answer for that. He hadn't really thought about it. "Because there were civilians around. In the arena it was just you and I. I didn't want you to get hurt."

Jason looked at him at that. "I could have killed you Tommy. If not me, it would have been Gasket or one of his robots. You weren't morphed."

"I know," Tommy said quietly. "Look Jason I don't hold what you did in Gasket's Arena against you. You were brainwashed and thought you were protecting people. That's the side of you that broke through whatever Gasket did to you."

Jason was silent for another moment thinking about what Tommy just said to him. "You should," he finally replied.

"You were brainwashed. Did you hold it against me when Rita made me the Green Ranger or when I was the Gray Ranger?"

"No because it wasn't your fault," Jason said.

"And what happened in Gasket's Arena wasn't your fault either," Tommy reminded him. "We've been through a lot the last few years and we can't just let Gasket or Rita and Zedd destroy our friendship."

Jason sighed. "Yeah I know. I just can't stop thinking about it. But you are right. Gasket can't win."

They worked for about an hour on the garage. They talked about other things other then being a Ranger. If it hadn't been for the uneasiness Jason still felt it would have seemed like this was a normal day. They finished the garage and then went up to the kitchen where Elizabeth had made meatloaf.

Tommy took the seat across from Jason at the dinner table. He hadn't been over to the Scott's for dinner since he moved to Napa. It felt like old times. Things were right once again.

Notes: I think I'll write another nice calm chapter before things really hit the fan and boy do they ever.


	16. A Luau to Remember

Notes: I'm stretching out the events in Zeo so not everything will happen when they do. A lot of the plot from Hawaii Zeo is in this chapter but not quite…

A couple of weeks later, Tommy was sitting in the Youth Center watching Jason and Rocky spar. His mind wasn't really on the spar. Both Jason and Rocky had asked him if he wanted to spar but he declined. He had been so tired lately and he couldn't figure out why. At first he blamed all the singing that he and Tanya did thanks to Gasket but that was a week ago. He just shrugged it off and decided not to bring it up to any of his friends.

"Hey," Kat said taking a seat next to him.

"Hi Kat," he greeted taking his attention off the spar to face Kat. He smiled at her and she returned the smile.

They sat and watched the spar some more neither one saying anything. They could both see that Jason was winning but Rocky was hanging in there. Tommy couldn't help but smile. Maybe he should be glad he turned down the offer to face the winner. They were going all out and he was tired.

"They are really good," Kat remarked and then blushed a little, "but so are you," she continued. "I couldn't even begin to imagine being able to do what you guys do."

"But you are good at ballet," Tommy reminded her. "I can't dance or sing."

"Really," Tanya asked as she and Adam joined them, "I guess you won't be trying out for West Side Story."

Tommy laughed knowing Tanya was joking. Rocky and Jason joined them at the table.

"You want to spar?" Rocky asked Adam.

"Sure," Adam said, "I just need to change," he said before leaving for the locker room. They watched him go.

"You sure you don't want to spar bro?" Jason asked as he towel dried his face.

"Nah," Tommy said tapping the unopened math book that sat on the table, "I have too much homework." This was true. He had been getting a little behind with the homework with the occasional monster fight.

Kat looked at her watch. "Speaking of homework I need to get to the library where I'm meeting Sabrina to work on our history project."

Tommy watched her go.

Jason looked from Tommy to Kat and said, "So when are you going to ask Kat out?"

Tommy seemed slightly taken aback by that. "What are you talking about?" He asked.

"Come on man. You and Kat have been getting close. So when are you going to ask her out?"

"She wouldn't be interested in going out with me," Tommy said with a slight blush on his face. He wasn't sure why he was embarrassed by this conversation. He wasn't nearly as shy as he had been when he had first thought of asking Kim out. He had gone out with several girls in Napa.

Tanya shook her head and Rocky laughed.

"What?" Tommy asked.

"She's obviously into you Tommy," Tanya said with a smile. "She'd definitely say yes if you ask her out."

"I'll think about it."

"Aloha!" Ernie called as he entered the café with leis. He started handing them out to everyone.

"Hey Ernie," Jason greeted, "how was Hawaii?"

"Great!" Ernie answered as he gave Jason a lei. "In fact I'm going to have a luau at the Beach Club tomorrow. I'm going to try out all of the drinks I tried in Hawaii."

"That sounds like fun," Tommy said already thinking about Kat. Maybe she'd want to go with him.

* * *

The next day the Rangers were sitting at tables at the Beach Club. Tommy and Kat were at a table by themselves while Rocky, Adam, Jason, and Tanya were sitting at another table with Emily who was not working that night.

Kat watched the dancers for a moment before turning to Tommy. "I'm glad you asked me to come tonight," she said.

"I'm glad you said yes," Tommy said with a grin. They watched as Jason, Tanya, Adam, and Rocky got up to dance the hula with the other dancers.

"Let's join them," Kat said pulling on Tommy's hand.

Tommy shook his head. "It's more fun to watch," He said. He was feeling better then he was yesterday but he really didn't feel like dancing the hula.

They sat back and watched them both laughing at their friends and others.

"Time for traditional Hawaiian dancers!" Ernie said as soon as the others were finished dancing. He moved back and the leaves revealed Cogs dressed in grass skirts.

Tommy almost started laughing at how funny they looked but the situation was serious. He joined the others with removing the Cogs and then prepared for a fight.

Notes: Sorry for ending it there but I wanted to keep the chapter nice. The s- starts hitting the fan next chapter and then you might want to buckle your seatbelts because trust me this is going to be a very bumpy ride.


	17. More Tests

Notes: More borrowed from Hawaii Zeo including a few lines. No this fic isn't quite over. Not by a long shot. I'm stretching things out and there are a few surprises still left in this fic. I think Jason got off too easily in Zeo compared to what's going to happen.

Once all of the bystanders were gone, Jason called, "It's Morphin time!"

"Zeo Ranger 1, Pink!" Kat called.

"Zeo Ranger 2, Yellow!" Tanya called.

"Zeo Ranger 3, Blue!" Rocky called.

"Zeo Ranger 4, Green!" Adam called.

"Zeo Ranger 5, Red!" Jason called.

"Gold Ranger Power!" Tommy called.

They started to fight the Cogs and were easily beating them, which wasn't unusual for the Rangers. They hardly ever had a problem when fighting the Cogs. Which made what happened in the fight ever the more unusual.

Something felt wrong to Tommy as he kicked one of the Cogs. His powers started weakening like they had in Gasket's Arena but there was nothing blocking his powers here was there? He wondered.

One Cog got a lucky kick in and Tommy fell to the ground. Everything was going kind of fuzzy for him right now. Things were going in and out of focus.

"Bro, you okay?" Jason called moving to check on him as Tommy struggled to his feet again.

"My powers are weakening," he informed him shocked by how weak his voice sounded. Something was really wrong.

Jason grew more concerned and tried to reach his best friend but a couple of Cogs intercepted him.

Tommy was knocked down to the ground hard and didn't quite have the strength to get back up.

There was a flash of light and Gasket and Archerina appeared before him. Great. Things couldn't get any worse. He thought.

Gasket walked up to him and stared down at him. His sword pointed at Tommy. "Your do-gooder days are over Gold Ranger," he said. "Surrender your Gold Ranger powers to me or be destroyed." Gasket said leaning further towards him.

"No way Gasket," Tommy said trying to pull himself back up.

He was saved by the arrival of Sprocket and Klank.

Tommy listened to the two robot siblings argue. Great Mondo is back. He thought. Just what they needed. As Gasket and Archerina moved away to talk to Sprocket, Tommy pulled himself painfully to his feet. His head was really spinning. He couldn't stand completely upright.

"Tommy!" Jason yelled finally getting away from the Cogs. He caught Tommy before he could fall to the ground. "I've got you bro," he said putting one of his arms around his waist to hold him upright. Kat did the same on the other side of Tommy. The Princes continued to argue as the Rangers teleported away. Neither seemed to notice that the Rangers had left.

* * *

When the Rangers arrived in the Power Chamber, Tommy could no longer stand and fell to the floor. His powers completely left him leaving him on the floor. Jason and Rocky helped him back to his feet.

"You okay bro?" Jason asked as soon as Tommy was back on his feet. Jason and Rocky still held him up though.

"Yeah," Tommy answered still sounding weak. "I'm just dizzy. I guess I've been overdoing it and not getting enough sleep. I'll be okay in a moment." He put a hand to his head hoping the room would stop spinning soon. What was wrong with him? He wondered.

"Zordon what do you think?" Adam asked.

"IT IS ENTIRELY POSSIBLE THAT TOMMY'S PHYSICAL EXHAUSTION HAS CAUSED HIS POWERS TO BECOME TEMPORARILY UNSTABLE. ALPHA WILL HAVE TO DO A COMPLETE BATTERY OF TESTS TO BE CERTAIN." Zordon said worry evident in his voice as he looked down at Tommy.

Tommy just shook his head. Not this again. He thought remembering all the tests he had to go through when his Green Ranger powers were failing him. He really hoped that wasn't what was going on right now. It had to be the fact that he hadn't been sleeping properly. Maybe he just needed a good night's sleep free of the nightmares that had been plaguing him since they had all left Gasket's Arena. He was never going to tell the other Rangers about that. He knew Jason still felt guilty about what he had done.

"When do we start the tests?" Tommy asked.

"WE WILL START THEM RIGHT AWAY. AS SOON AS WE FIGURE OUT WHAT IS CAUSING THE WEAKNESS IN YOUR POWERS THE SOONER WE WILL BE ABLE TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM."

Jason looked at the time part of the communicator. He hated to leave but he had to meet Emily for another lesson in karate. He saw Kat was doing the same thing.

"Tommy…" he started to say.

"Go," Tommy said. "I'll be okay. I'll let you know what the test results are."

Jason clapped his hand on Tommy's shoulder and then he teleported out of the Power Chamber.

Kat walked up to Tommy and smiled. "I'm sure the tests will be fine," she said reassuringly. "I need to go teach a ballet class. Let me know what the results are," she said and left also.

Tanya, Rocky, and Adam left also. Tommy was left in the Power Chamber with Zordon and Alpha. He was instructed to lie on the bio bed. He closed his eyes as a scanner ran over his body. The scan didn't take long and soon he was sitting on the bio bed waiting for them to finish all of the tests. He admitted he was feeling a little better already now that he wasn't trying to fight but he was still tired.

"I WILL HAVE THE RESULTS OF THE TEST READY FOR YOU TOMORROW," Zordon informed him. "I WILL CONTACT YOU WHEN THE RESULTS ARE IN. FOR NOW I RECOMMEND TAKING IT EASY."

Tommy wasn't going to protest that. He didn't have the energy to do anything strenuous. He just hoped he could get past his aunt and uncle without them noticing.

* * *

Tommy had no idea how he was able to concentrate in school the next day. All he could think about was the test results. He was worried what had happened when he was the Green Ranger was happening again. He was lucky that his aunt and uncle hadn't noticed how tired he was. He wasn't sure he could come up with a plausible excuse for that.

As he shut his locker he heard the familiar beeps from his communicator.

Jason who had been standing there along with Tanya said, "You want me to go there with you?" He asked.

"No I'll be okay. I'll see you guys in the Youth Center." He said before slinging his backpack over his shoulder. He found a deserted spot in the high school and teleported up to the Power Chamber.

He looked up to Zordon expectantly.

"I HAVE THE RESULTS FROM THE TESTS WE PERFORMED YESTERDAY," Zordon informed him.

Tommy readied himself for any bad news that could possibly headed his way.

"THEY TURNED OUT NEGATIVE. YOUR POWER LEVELS ARE AT THE LEVEL THEY SHOULD BE. IT IS VERY POSSIBLE THAT YOUR EXHAUSTION MAY BE EFFECTING YOUR CONCENTRATION SO I RECOMMEND YOU TAKE IT EASY FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS."

Tommy let out the breath he had been holding. This was good news. "I guess I just have to hope Mondo and Gasket don't do anything," he said looking up at his mentor. Then he remembered something his mentor had just said. Focus. That seemed to be the word that described him since the Gray Ranger incident. He had to keep focused when he was a Ranger.

"Thanks Zordon," Tommy said before teleporting to meet the others. Things were going to be okay. He decided.


	18. A Nice Stroll Through the Park

Notes: Sorry I couldn't resist posting this now.

Tommy glanced at his watch as he hurried through Angel Grove Park. He was already ten minutes late. He supposed he shouldn't be surprised he was late but he had been really trying to be on time for things. He wasn't successful yet but he was trying.

He stopped when he heard a rustling noise in the bushes. The rustling stopped and he assumed it was an animal or the wind. He kept walking through the park.

He heard more rustling.

He spun around and found no one. Why was he so jumpy? He wondered. He had been on edge since he started having problems with the Gold Ranger powers, which was something he hadn't really discussed with the others. As far as they knew he was okay now. Out of pure luck, Mondo hadn't sent down a monster in awhile so he didn't have to try his powers.

There was more rustling but Tommy chose to keep walking this time.

Then he heard a squawk that didn't sound like any bird that would be found on earth. He spun around to see two Tangas staring at him with interest.

Not what he was expecting to find in the park that was for sure. Cogs maybe but not Tengas. He charged at the Tenga and kicked it squarely in the chest. It fell to the ground and then Tommy kicked took care of the other Tenga. He watched them disappear. What was that about? He wondered.

He looked around before contacting Zordon. "Zordon its Tommy. I was just attacked by two Tengas in the park."

"TOMMY," Zordon answered. "I HAVE SCANNED THE AREA NEAR YOUR PRESENT LOCATION AND HAVE FOUND NO DANGER. BE ON YOUR GUARD."

"I will Zordon," Tommy said closing off communication. He glanced at the time. Now he was really late. He hurried though the park. He was halfway through the park when he heard the sound of Cogs.

Today just wasn't his day.

* * *

"Hey Adam have you seen Tommy?" Jason said coming up to Adam who was just finishing a class in the Youth Center.

"No. He was supposed to be here to teach the class. He's probably late."

Jason nodded. That was one thing that never changed about Tommy. He was habitually late to everything. He walked over to where Emily was standing behind the counter making smoothies for customers.

"Hey Jason," she greeted. "I'll be ready in a few minutes. I just need to finish these smoothie orders."

"No problem," Jason said with a grin. "I need to change anyway."

He went to the locker room to change. He tossed his bag into his usual locker after taking out the clothes he usually worked out in. He looked over at his best friend's usual locker and wondered what was keeping him.

* * *

Tommy fought the cogs and was starting to grow tired. It seemed like no matter how many Cogs he took down more showed up.

"It's morphin time!" He called. "Gold Ranger Power!"

Tommy was relieved by the power that flowed through him. He wasn't feeling so tired anymore. He knew with his power problems lately it might not last. It was something he had gotten quite used to when he was the Green Ranger.

He fought them and his suit kept flickering. This couldn't be happening again!

There was a cackle.

He turned around to see Zedd and Rita standing there.

"New suit same problem huh Tommy?" Zedd asked.

"Personally I always thought he looked better in green," Rita said twirling her wand.

"What do you want?" Tommy asked as he kicked a Cog away from him.

"We want your powers," Mondo said joining them.

"You can't have them," Tommy said as his powers flickered out completely.

Zedd smiled. "It seems you can't either." Zedd said raising his staff. "Well if we can't have them, we'll have to settle with your death." He threw his staff in Tommy's direction.

Tommy raised his own staff, which had not disappeared preparing to block the staff. He wasn't quite sure why Zedd had thrown the staff, as it wasn't effective. When he finally saw what Zedd's intentions were it was too late.

He dropped his staff as he clutched his arm. He was already becoming light headed. The snake slithered back to Zedd.

"Zedd I wanted those powers!" Mondo yelled.

"This is even better," Zedd said and then started laughing.

Tommy raised his good arm to his head as his head started to spin even more. The snake had bitten him in the arm that did not have his communicator. He couldn't lift his arm as he was in too much pain. He had to hope Zordon was watching the situation and would teleport him to the Power Chamber.

Tommy was left alone in the park as Mondo, Rita, and Zedd teleported away.

He wasn't too far from the Youth Center. Maybe he could make it.

* * *

"I'm really worried about Tommy," Adam said to Tanya after he finished teaching the class. "He's never missed one of his classes. He'll be late but he'd still make it."

"Maybe we should contact him?" Tanya suggested. "Maybe he completely forgot? He's seemed kind of out of it lately."

"Right." Adam agreed. He stood up and started to go to the exit of the Youth Center when there was a loud gasp.

Tommy came stumbling into the Youth Center clutching his arm. He collapsed to the floor.

"Tommy!" Jason yelled as he ran over to him. He started to look Tommy over to see what was the matter. Tommy's eyes were closed tightly and his teeth were gritted.

Ernie came over and kneeled next to Jason a phone in his hand.

"I don't know. He just stumbled in here and collapsed. "He's about seventeen. He started to reach for his hand and stopped.

Jason got a good look at Tommy's arm then. He wasn't completely sure but it looked like snakebite. Where would a snake have bitten Tommy? He wondered.

"It looks like a snake bite." He put a hand over the receiver. "Emily get me some warm water, a clean cloth, and soap!"

She hurried to do so.

Jason stared at his best friend lying on the ground. Why hadn't he worried sooner? Maybe if he had gone looking for Tommy this wouldn't have happened.


	19. Unknown

In the Power Chamber Zordon could sense something was wrong but he didn't know what. What Tommy had said earlier had him concerned. It seemed rather odd that two Tengas would attack Tommy in the park.

"ALPHA SCAN TOMMY'S LOCATION AGAIN."

Alpha started the scan. "He's in the Youth Center with the other Rangers."

Zordon was relieved to hear that though it did not explain his uneasiness.

There was a flash of light and the three Treys appeared in the Power Chamber.

"Zordon we have sensed a disturbance with the Gold Ranger powers," Trey of Wisdom said as he stepped forward. "We must bring Tommy up to the Power Chamber."

"ALPHA PLEASE CONTACT TOMMY IMMEDIATELY," Zordon instructed.

"Ai yai yai!" Alpha exclaimed. "He's not answering."

"BRING HIM UP ON THE SCREEN."

The screen showed Tommy being lifted onto a stretcher with the other Rangers standing around looking concerned. Zordon was very concerned. It hadn't been that long since Tommy contacted him about being attacked by Tengas had it? He wondered. How could things go so badly in such a short amount of time?

"It's worse then I feared," Trey of Heart said as he looked at his two other parts. They were all thinking the same thing. Something had gone very wrong and they were sure Zordon was thinking the same thing.

* * *

Jason stood to the side and watched as the paramedics strapped Tommy to the stretcher. Bulk and Skull, much to Jason's surprise, were keeping others back. Maybe their police training hadn't been completely forgotten no matter how short it was.

One of the paramedics turned to Ernie. "Has anyone contacted his parents yet?"

"No," Jason spoke up. "His parents live in Napa. He lives in Angel Grove with his aunt and uncle."

"We better get him to the hospital," her partner said.

"Could I ride with him?" Jason asked.

"Are you family?" The female paramedic asked as they wheeled Tommy to the waiting ambulance.

"No but I'm his best friend. We are as close as brothers."

The paramedics loaded Tommy into the ambulance. 'Okay you can ride along but you'll have to ride up front."

Jason nodded and hopped into the front.

Adam, Rocky, and Tanya watched the ambulance drive off. Kat was inside calling the Rush's.

* * *

The ambulance arrived at the hospital quickly thanks to the sirens. They unloaded Tommy from the ambulance with the EMTs rattling off information as they hurried down the hall. Jason was almost glad he didn't understand what they were saying. He was scared enough for his best friend as it was.

Jason looked down at Tommy's communicator. Jason had removed the communicator when no one was looking. The communicator hadn't sounded since Tommy was loaded into the ambulance. Jason could only assume that Zordon was aware of the situation. At least he hoped that was what it meant.

A nurse came into the waiting room. "You came in with Tommy Oliver right?" She asked.

"Yeah."

"I need you to fill out these forms," she said. "Fill out all of the information you can and then bring it to the desk," she said nodding towards the desk about 20 feet away. She walked away.

Jason filled out as much information he could. He'd let the Rush's fill out the insurance part of the form. He looked at the clock that was hanging on the wall as he walked to the desk. Time was going so slowly.

Ten minutes the other Rangers and the Rush's joined later Jason when the doctor came out.

"We believe we have removed all of the venom in Tommy," Dr. Ashford started. "However, we are not familiar with this type of snake so we are unsure if Tommy is out of the clear or if there is any venom left." He turned to Josh and Stephanie. "Have his parents been contacted?"

"I called my sister-in-law," Stephanie said. "She said she'll tell Ryan and they'll be down here as soon as possible."

The doctor nodded. "I think it's best that I talk to his parents as soon as possible." He said and started to leave.

"Wait Dr. Ashford," Kat said.

The doctor stopped.

"Is Tommy awake? Can we see him?"

"He's unconscious right now. We are going to run a few more tests before we allow visitors. Are there any more questions?" They shook their heads and he left.

The Rangers exchanged looks. Could the Machine Empire have caused this? They all seemed to be wondering.


	20. So What Happens Now?

Charlotte Oliver sat in the middle seat on an airplane to Los Angeles. They had driven from Napa to San Francisco California as soon as they could. Though Oakland would have been closer, they couldn't leave until the morning. As it was, they would be landing in Los Angeles a little after 10:00 and they still had to drive to Angel Grove. It was still faster then driving. They wouldn't arrive until very early in the morning. The Oliver's didn't care at this point. They just wanted to be with Tommy.

Charlotte couldn't help but wonder what had happened to Tommy. She still remembered the phone call she received from her sister-in-law earlier that day.

"_Charlotte Oliver speaking," she said into her phone as she typed a few numbers into her computer._

"_Charlotte?" Stephanie asked. "It's Stephanie."_

"_Hello Stephanie how are you?" _

"_I'm okay," she said sounding unsure of herself. "I'm not sure how to say this."_

"_Are Josh and Tommy okay?" She asked fear gripping her as she heard the worry in the younger woman's voice._

"_Tommy was bit by a snake this afternoon and he's been taken to the hospital."_

"_What?" Charlotte asked. "Is he okay?"_

"_I'm driving there right now. I'm not sure. I'll call you when we hear something."_

"_We'll come down." She said glancing at her schedule. She didn't have anything that needed to be rescheduled thankfully. Ryan might have a lot more trouble at work but she knew he'd want to be there._

"_I'm sure he'll be fine," Stephanie said not sounding completely confident. _

"_We'll still come down."_

The pilot's voice over the intercom brought her out of her thoughts.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," he said, "we have begun our final descent into Los Angeles. The temperature there right now is 43. Thank you again for flying United Airlines."

Cory blinked his eyes at his parents as he woke up. It was way past his bedtime that was for sure. He had tried to stay awake for the flight but had fallen asleep halfway through it.

"Are we there yet?" He asked with a yawn.

_"Almost," Ryan said as he put his seat in an upright position. "Watch out the windows. You can see all of the lights."_

_Cory watched out the window with wide eyes. It was his first flight. He didn't quite understand why they were going back to Angel Grove so suddenly but he easily forgot about it in the excitement of the plane landing._

* * *

_Jason leaned against a console to resist the urge to look at his watch. The last time he checked, it was a little past 10:30. He wanted to be down at the hospital with the others but right now he was in the Power Chamber listening to Zordon, Alpha, and the Treys discuss the urgency of the matter. The doctors didn't know the type of snake and neither did Zordon. Jason had been upset when he found out that Tommy had contacted Zordon about an attack in the park but hadn't contacted the other Rangers. Maybe if they had been there this could have been prevented._

_Zordon turned his attention towards Jason. "IT IS GETTING LATE JASON. WE ARE NOT GOING TO BE MAKING ANY DECISIONS REGARDING THE GOLD RANGER POWERS AT THIS TIME. IT WOULD BE BEST FOR YOU TO RETURN HOME AND GO TO SLEEP. I WILL CONTACT YOU AS SOON AS WE HAVE MORE INFORMATION."_

_Jason shook his head. "No I want to know what's going on." He said. "I told my parents I was going to be at the hospital tonight and Adam's covering for me."_

_"VERY WELL," Zordon said._

_Jason went back to half listening to the conversation. His mind kept wandering and it wasn't from being tired. He finally said what was on his mind. "Is Tommy going to die?"_

_Five sets of eyes and a robot looked at Jason for a moment._

_None of them spoke for a moment. _

_"I DON'T KNOW." Zordon said truthfully._


	21. Home

Charlotte hurried through the emergency room doors at 1 AM. Ryan followed right behind her with Cory in his arms. The hospital hallways were deserted, as visiting hours were long over. Charlotte went up to the security guard at the front desk. "Tommy Oliver's room."

"I'm sorry ma'am but visiting hours are over."

"We are his parents and just flew in from Napa because our son is in the hospital. I want to see my son." Charlotte was too tired to use politeness.

The security guard looked over his computer. "Charlotte Oliver?" He asked.

"Yes."

"Okay he's in room 278. I will notify the nursing station that you are on your way up."

"Thank you," Charlotte said and walked down the hallway and to the elevator realizing it would be easier for Ryan if they didn't go up the stairs.

When they arrived at room 278 they found a nurse was waiting for them.

"Hello my name is Nurse Paula. You must be the Oliver's." She said with a smile. "Stephanie Rush said you would be getting here late. Unfortunately Dr. Ashford has gone home for the evening but I can definitely fill you in on what we know. Why don't we take a seat?" She said gesturing toward the waiting room chairs.

They went over to the chairs and Ryan laid Cory down and placed his coat over him. Nurse Paula went and got a blanket for them.

"Your son Tommy was rushed to the hospital this afternoon after he collapsed at the Youth Center from a snake bite."

"He wasn't bitten at the Youth Center was he?" Charlotte asked. It seemed highly unlikely to her but it was Angel Grove. Anything was possible.

"Oh no," she said. "We do not know where the snake bite happened. We haven't been able to determine what kind of snake bit him. We believe we have gotten all of the venom out but it's hard to tell." She stopped and looked at them for a moment before saying, "Tommy's in a coma."

"Coma?" Charlotte asked her voice shaking.

"Yes. He's not responding to any stimuli."

Charlotte closed her eyes for a moment. Ryan grabbed her hand and held it tightly.

"Is Tommy going to be okay?" Ryan asked.

The nurse didn't say anything right away before she said, "it's too soon to tell."

Charlotte started crying. Not Tommy. Tommy was supposed to be okay. He was supposed to be safe now that he wasn't a Power Ranger and now a snake had bitten him. It wasn't right. Not right at all.

The nurse stood up. "I need to check on some more patients. Nurse Monica is at the nursing station if you need anything." She said and left.

"We should have never agreed to let him come back to Angel Grove," Charlotte said.

"We had no way of knowing this would happen," Ryan reminded her. "Tommy wanted to be with his friends his senior year. We couldn't say no."

"But nothing happened to him in Napa!" She shot back. "He had a lot of friends and was an honor student last semester. It's just not fair."

Ryan didn't say anything. He just reached out and held her.

* * *

"I don't want to be here," Jason said to Rocky and Kat as they walked into English class. He barely held back a yawn. He had gone home at about 3 in the morning after it was decided that Billy would come back to Earth to help with Trey's reunification process. Billy's coming home had been his decision after hearing that Tommy was in the hospital.

"I know what you mean," Kat said. She may have not been up in the Power Chamber all night like Jason but she had been at the hospital until 9 and then couldn't sleep when she went home.

Mrs. Applebee came up to them. "How's Tommy?" She asked. "I had seen on the news that Tommy was bit by a snake."

"He's in a coma." Kat said.

Mrs. Applebee cringed inwardly. Tommy didn't have any luck. Tommy was one of her favorite students and she hated to hear all the things that had happened to him in one year. "Please keep me posted." She said and then went to her desk and started looking through her papers for today's lesson.

Jason could not concentrate at school that day. All he could think about was Tommy. He was pretty sure he had failed his math and Spanish tests. It wasn't that he didn't know the material he just couldn't concentrate and had only answered half of the questions on both tests. Spanish might as well have been in Eltarian for all that he could answer.

At lunch he was supposed to meet the others at the Youth Center but Jason decided to cut class instead. He went to the hospital. When he reached Tommy's room, he opened the door.

And ran right into Billy who was leaving the room.

"Billy!" He said before giving his long time friend a hug. "I didn't realize you were back already."

"I just arrived." Billy said. He dropped his voice. "I had to retrieve a sample of Tommy's blood so that Zordon could examine it."

"That's a good idea," Jason said. "If Zordon could figure out what's wrong, maybe we could save Tommy."

Billy nodded but his face didn't seem as optimistic. "I'll see you later Jason." He said and left.

Jason went into the hospital room and up to Tommy's bed. He sat down in a chair. He jumped up when he realized he was sitting on one of Cory's toys. He placed it on the bedside table.

He looked at his friend who was looking rather pale. There was sheen of sweat on his forehead and there were several Ivs attached to his arms. It was hard for Jason to see Tommy like this and yet he felt a sense of dejavu.

He couldn't think about the Gray Ranger days. This was different. He hoped it was different anyway. Maybe it was nothing but a snake on Earth and not something sinister from the Machine Empire.

Jason shook his head. Tommy was never that lucky.

Jason got up suddenly. He should call Zack, Trini, and Kimberly. They should know about Tommy being in the hospital.

He hurried away to make the phone calls.

Notes: Next chapter phone calls.


	22. Phone Call to Florida

Notes: If you are familiar with some of my old stories like Trouble in Florida and my Home for the Holidays series, you'll recognize a few OC's that I like to use. In my stories Chase is the guy Kim dumped Tommy for. Well except Home For the Holidays. That was a guy everyone's familiar with :D.

Kimberly Hart hit her last tumbling pass with a solid landing and she turned and did her final post to end the routine. She was breathing hard it had been a hard work out. She hasn't worked this hard with any coaches before and she liked it. She knew this was the type of training she needed if she was going to be a serious gymnast.

"Very good Kimberly," Coach Schmidt said from his spot next to the tumbling mat where he had been watching her. "The only thing I would correct is your third tumbling pass. You came very close to going out of bounds."

Kimberly nodded. She had noticed that too. She had been sure she had stepped out of bounds actually.

"Why don't you cool down and call it a day?" coach Schmidt suggested. "I understand there's a party for Morgan tonight. I will not keep you gymnasts too late," he said with a grin.

"Thank you Coach Schmidt," she said before moving away from the mat so that her roommate, Alison Williams, could work on her floor routine.

Chase Willis sat down next to her on the mat and started stretching. He and Kimberly had been dating for a month now. Kimberly had dated a few other guys in Florida but Chase was her first serious boyfriend since Tommy. Chase was a lot like Tommy but also a lot different. He was nearly as serious about gymnastics as Tommy was about karate. She always thought if the two ever met they would be friends.

"You going to Morgan's party tonight?" Chase asked.

"Yeah. Actually I think it's at my apartment," Kim said with a grin. "You're totally invited."

The party for Morgan was a last minute party that Alison threw together once she found out it was Morgan's birthday. It was supposed to be a surprise party but that surprise lasted about five minutes.

"Great!" Chase said with a grin.

They continued their stretching and cool down watching Alison complete her floor routine.

Once she was finished, Alison came over and sat down on the mat next to Kim. "You are coming to the party right Chase?" she asked.

"Yeah. Kim already invited me."

"Good I think that's everyone." She said as she started to stretch. "I'm glad Coach Schmidt let us out early. I have to go to the store and pick up food. Everyone's chipped in I just have to pick it up."

"I'll go with you," Kim started to say when she noticed one of the receptionists was heading their way.

"Kimberly there's a phone call for you from someone named Jason Scott."

Kimberly got to her feet quickly. It was strange that Jason would be calling her at the gym. She no longer had a communicator but Jason knew when she was finished in the gym and had never called her there.

She followed the receptionist into the gym office and picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Kimberly it's Jason," Jason said.

The tone of Jason's voice sent a chill down Kimberly's spine. "What's wrong?" she asked.

There was a long pause before Jason said, "it's Tommy."

Kimberly sank into one of the chairs in the room. She may not have been dating Tommy anymore but she cared about him.

"He was bit by a snake yesterday and is in the hospital."

"A snake? Is he alright?" she asked.

"I don't know," Jason said his voice shaking a little. "The doctors don't know much." There was a loud bell on Jason's end. "I gotta go," he said. "I'll call you as soon as I have more info." He said and hung up.

Kimberly stared at the phone dumb founded. Tommy had been bitten by a snake? From how Jason sounded it didn't sound so simple as a snake bite. She had to go to Angel Grove.

* * *

Jason hung up the phone and sighed. He so did not want to be in school today. He would have completely skipped school if Charlotte Oliver hadn't insisted he go back to school when she had seen him in the hospital coridor. His mind was definitely not on school.

He went into Chemistry Class and took his seat. He did not even look at the empty seat next to him which normally would have been occupied by Tommy.

Mr. Paulson came in and handed out a pop quiz. Jason spent the first five minutes just staring at the test. There goes another test he thought as he just pushed the paper away.

Mr. Paulson cleared his throat before saying, "Jason could I have a word with you?"

Jason got out of his seat. Mr. Paulson opened the door and let Jason out before turning back to the students. "You are on your honor system and believe me I will be able to tell if you are cheating."

He walked out into the hall and joined Jason. "Jason a few of your teachers and I were discussing your tests today. I'm sure it's no surprise that you failed your Spanish test. I realize it must be very difficult for you to be here today after what happened to Tommy. I want you to know I will not count the quiz against you this one time. Mr. Caplan wants to talk to you in his office." He said handing him a slip of paper.

Mr. Paulson went back into the classroom without another word.

Jason looked down at the slip of paper before walking to Mr. Caplan's office.

The secretary barely looked at him before saying, "You can go right in."

He went in and found not only Mr. Caplan but his mother sitting there.

"Have a seat," he instructed.

Jason sat down in the chair next to his mother. His mother being in the office was the last thing he had expected.

"Jason your teachers have been expressing concern about you today. They have said you aren't focusing in school and have failed both tests you had today. I understand that Tommy Oliver is your best friend and that he is in the emergency room of the hospital. Normally I wouldn't have brought you into this office. It probably wouldn't have come to my attention at all but I received a phone call from your mother today who has talked to the Olivers."

"Jason," Mrs. Scott said grasping his hand.

Jason's heartbeat quickened afraid of what she was about to say to him. Had Tommy died? He wondered. He had just seen him an hour or so ago.

"Tommy's very ill," Elizabeth continued. She took a deep breath and let it out. "They are worried he may not make it."

Jason just stared at his mother in shock. It wasn't that he hadn't thought that. He had just asked Zordon that last night in the Power Chamber.

"They are still trying to pinpoint what kind of snake it is but they are giving him about a 40% chance of surviving if they do not find a way to cure him. They said the percentage may go down the longer it takes them to find something," she let out another soft sigh. "Jason I'm going to sign you out of school for the next couple of days. Why don't you go get your books."

Jason just sat there in silence for a moment still comprehending what she had said. Tommy was going to die.

Why didn't he realize something was wrong yesterday?

Notes: I know that's a mean place to stop and go with that. I'm not saying either way if Tommy will survive. You just have to keep reading. I'll get to the phone call to Zack and Trini...soon


	23. Worst Fears

Zack plopped down in a seat next to Trini. He was supposed to be studying for an exam but he had wanted to see his girlfriend first. She was sitting there with a thick book in her lap. She barely cast Zack a look before going back to the book.

"I can't believe you aren't studying!" she said. "Aaron said it's hard and he took it yesterday."

"I'm tired of studying," he said with a grin. "You know what Mel said. If we don't know the material by now we'll never know it."

"Now you quote Mrs. Morgan," Trini said with a smile before closing her book. Mrs. Morgan had insisted everyone call her Mel. She said they'd known each other for several years now and this was the last year of the Peace Conference.

Zack looked at his watch before saying, "we've still got two hours before the test. Let's go eat breakfast and then we'll study."

Trini pondered what Zack said and then stood up. "A quick bite to eat. Then we need to study."

"Trini! Zack!" Mark Johansson said hurrying over to them. "I'm glad I caught you. There was a message from Jason Scott asking you to call him right away. You can use the phone in the office."

Trini and Zack exchanged worried glances both thinking the same thing. A call from home couldn't be good. They hurried past Mark and into the main office.

"You want to make the call?" Zack asked.

Trini shook her head. She was nervous enough as it was. "You better call him."

Zack started to pick up the phone and stopped it was about midnight in Angel Grove. Should he wake them? He decided to take the chance. He'd apologize to the Scott's later.

The phone rang twice before Jason answered it. "Hello?"

"Jason its Zack. Trini and I just got your message. What's wrong?" He decided there was no reason to beat around the bush. He knew if Jason had called them it had to be important.

There was a long pause before he finally said, "It's Tommy."

"What happened to Tommy?" Zack asked. Wasn't Tommy still in Napa? He wondered.

"He's in the hospital. A snake bit him yesterday." There was another pause before Jason said in a trembling voice "they don't know if he's going to make it."

Zack handed the phone to Trini unable to say anything. He was in a state of shock. He listened to her and saw her face fall.

"We'll be there as soon as we can," she said before they hung up.

Neither of them said anything. They were both in a state of shock.

* * *

Lord Zedd watched Tommy's hospital room with interest. It was working out better then he had hoped. He had never used his snake as a deadly weapon. The last snake he had was one he used to turn people evil. Baboo or Squatt had eaten that snake, which was the reason they were no longer in his service.

He sighed. This was going much too slow. He could speed along the process but he had a better idea. The Gold Ranger powers were lying dormant inside of the comatose teenager and were there for the taking. He wondered who would be the best to handle this and realized Goldar and Rito were out of the question. They would just mess everything up. He had learned a long time ago to never send an idiot to do something important even if he had to learn that lesson over and over again.

He went into the Winnebago to see if he could find the device that had blocked Jason from being detected when he was the Grey Ranger and could not find it. He figured it had been destroyed when the spell had been broken. This was a time he missed having Finster around. He made a mental note to go after the traitor after he took the Gold Ranger powers.

He started a search for a device that would keep him from being detected. He gave up and went down to Earth after changing his appearance.

***d

Billy looked up from the console. "I think we may have found a solution."

"What is it Billy?" Trey of Wisdom asked.

"I found a way to make a device that will quicken the reunification process. It may not work though," he said with a sigh. "The formulas I have come up with do not seem to match what I need them to completely."

"I have faith in you Billy," Trey of Heart said.

"We must hurry," Trey of Courage said looking away from the viewing globe that was currently watching Tommy's vitals. He didn't need to say what everyone was thinking. The longer the waited the less of a chance they could get the powers back before it was too late.

* * *

Charlotte Oliver entered Tommy's hospital room after a quick bite to eat. She found the room empty so she sat in a chair next to Tommy's bed and just watched her son lay there. If it weren't for the IVs and the sheen of sweat on Tommy's forehead, she'd think her son was sleeping. On the outside he looked normal. On the inside she knew his body was fighting whatever toxins the snake released into him.

A doctor came into the room. He seemed very surprised to see Charlotte sitting there. "Oh I'm sorry," he said. "I thought no one was in here. I would like to examine Tommy by myself."

Charlotte nodded and left the room. Something gnawed at her that there was something not quite right going on but she could not put her finger on it. He didn't look like one of Tommy's normal doctors but then again, the room had doctors and nurses going in and out and it was hard to keep track of them.

A flash of light made her turn to the room wondering what was going on. What she saw confirmed her worst fears.


	24. Well This Can't Be Good

Notes: Short chapter but it just seemed like the right place to stop it.

Charlotte was about to step into the room when someone grabbed her by the arm. She barely held back a scream as she turned around to see a young man with dark hair and some markings on his face standing there.

"Don't worry," he said. "Jason's there."

A moment later there was another flash. The young man held up a hand indicating for her to stay before he looked into the room.

"They're gone," he said.

"Who are you?" She demanded.

"I'm a friend. Please trust me," he said.

Charlotte frowned when she saw Billy walk past them into the room.

"What is going on here?" She demanded.

"Trey," Billy called.

"Excuse me," he said and went into the room.

Charlotte followed them into the room and shut the curtains. She watched as Billy and the other man looked over Tommy.

"I don't think he did anything," Billy said to the other man.

"Excuse me," Charlotte said making both of them look up. "What's going on?" She demanded.

Billy looked away before saying, "we should go somewhere else to converse."

"I agree Billy," the other person said. "You think Zordon will let her come up there?"

"Who's Zordon?" Charlotte asked, "and who are you?"

"I'm sorry for not introducing myself," he said. "My name is Trey. I'm a friend of Tommy's. Zordon's another friend."

"What just happened in here?"

"We aren't completely certain," Trey answered. "We detected a disturbance in Tommy's room and came as quickly as we could. I don't know how Jason knew what was going on before we did."

Charlotte balled up her fists. This wasn't happening. "He's still a Ranger isn't he?" She asked looking towards Tommy.

Trey nodded.

Charlotte closed her eyes tightly. She had known deep down when she was in Angel Grove but she had wanted to believe Tommy. He had lied to her. She now wished he would wake up so she could yell at him. "Was this 'disturbance' the reason Tommy was bitten by a snake?"

"We do not know for certain," Billy said as he put the scanner away. "It looks like it but we have been unable to confirm it.

There was a knock on the door. "Hello," a cheerful voice called.

They turned around to see a smiling nurse standing in the doorway.

"I'm here to check Tommy's vitals," she explained. "I didn't realize anyone was in here."

Charlotte frowned. Hadn't the 'doctor' said something similar? She wondered.

"I'd like to stay in here while you do so," she said.

"Oh that's more then fine! There's no reason for you to leave the room at this point."

"Mrs. Oliver," Billy said, "We need to go. Let us know if you need anything."

She nodded curtly before turning her attention back to Tommy.

* * *

Trey of Courage and Billy teleported back to the Power Chamber and were more then surprised to see that Jason was not there.

"Where's Jason?" Billy asked.

Zordon frowned. "ALPHA START A SCAN FOR JASON'S CURRENT LOCATION." He said.

Alpha performed the scan. The three Treys and Billy stood waiting nervously.

"Ai yai yai! I am not able to find his current location Zordon," Alpha exclaimed.


	25. Unification

Kimberly stood in front of her gate at Miami International Airport. This plane would take her to Orlando where she'd have a brief layover before taking a plane to Los Angeles where she would catch another plane to Angel Grove.

She couldn't believe she was about to go home. It had only been a couple of months since she had left Angel Grove to go to Miami to train for the Pan Globals. She thought for sure she wouldn't be back before Christmas.

Coach Schmidt was very understanding after she told him that there was an emergency back home. She told him that she'd be back as soon as possible. Chase had accompanied her to the airport and had wished her luck. He knew that she and Tommy were still friends. She hoped one day Chase and Tommy would meet. She they would get along.

"American Airlines Flight 2062 to Orlando will begin boarding," a Flight Attendant announced. Kim gathered her things when her row was announced. She settled into her window seat. It was a short flight to Orlando but this whole trip was going to be long.

* * *

"I still can't believe this," Rocky said that morning at school. "First Tommy gets bitten by a snake and then Jason disappears."

Adam nodded before saying, "Mrs. Scott called me to see if I could bring Jason his homework. I didn't ask her if she has seen Jason. I didn't want to worry her until we knew more."

"That's a good idea," Kat agreed.

The bell rang signaling they had two minutes to get to first period. They split up and went in different directions. Kat and Rocky entered their class and took their normal seats. Kat was shocked to see that there was a girl sitting at Tommy's desk. Mr. Watson came into the room but didn't say anything to her.

"Class," he said, "I'd like you to meet Holly Edwards. She has just moved here from Indiana."

Most of the students looked in Holly's direction but no one said anything. It was a clear indication that the Oliver's had decided to remove Tommy from school.

At the end of class, Kat watched as Holly gathered her books before going up to her. "Hello," she greeted, "my name's Kat."

"Holly," she said with a smile. She seemed to notice no one was looking at her as they exited the classroom. "First days are always weird," she said to Kat, "but this is really weird."

Kat gave her a weak smile but she didn't know what to say. It wasn't Holly's fault. "I'm sorry about that," she finally said.

"Oh it's not your fault," Holly said quickly. "Being an Army brat makes things weird. Not that this move is Army related. My Grandma's really sick so we moved to Angel Grove to take care of her."

"I'm sorry to hear your Grandmother's sick. I was new here last year. You'll like this school. What's your next class?"

"English with Applebee." She said after consulting her schedule.

"Me too," Kat said and led her away.

* * *

Billy stood in the Power Chamber watching Alpha make adjustments to the device in its hands. They were all hoping they had found a way to unify Trey. Zedd's attempt to steal the Gold Ranger Powers had sent them all into a panic. They couldn't protect Tommy all the time and with Jason missing, their focus was becoming divided.

"TREY," Zordon said, "PLEASE STEP FORWARD." They did so. "ALPHA YOU MAY BEGIN."

Trey of Courage held the staff, which Zordon had been able to retrieve. This would have been easier with Tommy present but that was not possible.

Alpha pressed several buttons on a console. Billy stood back and watched. What would they do if this didn't work? He wondered.

There was a bright flash of light that momentarily blinded Billy. When the light faded, there was only one Trey standing there in the Gold Ranger suit.

Trey took his helmet off. "Thank you Billy and Alpha. I will remain on Earth as long as my help is needed."

"THANK YOU PRINCE TREY. I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT WE WILL BE IN NEED OF YOUR ASSISTANCE."

* * *

When Tanya arrived at the hospital that afternoon she was surprised that Jason wasn't there. She had been told that Jason was missing but she had been hoping that they were wrong. She entered the hospital room and found two teenage girls she had never met sitting in the chairs next to Tommy's bed.

"Hi!" One said cheerfully. "I'm Michelle and this is Heidi," she said indicating the other girl in the room. "We are friends of Tommy's from Napa."

"We had to come to see him," Heidi said. "I still can't believe he was bit by a snake! I mean I've heard of snake bites but nothing like this."

"I know," Tanya said, "we were all shocked. I'm Tanya. I'm a friend of Tommy's too."

"I just talked to him a couple of weeks ago," Heidi said. "He wanted to come up and take me to the Homecoming Dance but I told him not to. I wish I had allowed him."

Mrs. Oliver came into the room. "Hello girls," she greeted. She placed fresh flowers next to Tommy's bed. Ever since they moved Tommy into a regular room, she had been trying to brighten it up.

"Hi Mrs. Oliver," Tanya said, "Those are beautiful flowers."

"Thanks," she said as she picked up something from the third chair in the room. She handed it to Tanya. It was Jason's communicator. "I must have missed Jason today."

Tanya looked away as she fingered the communicator. Had Jason been here today? She wondered. She had hoped Zordon would contact them when they found him. She put the communicator into her backpack.

"Do you need anything Mrs. Oliver?" Heidi asked. "I could go get it for you."

"Thanks for the offer Heidi but I'm okay. Ryan had to go back to Napa this morning and took Corey with him." She patted Tommy's good hand as she said; "I'm taking a leave of absence from the bank. Ryan and I decided one of us should be here," her voice started to shake as she continued, "in case something happens."

No one knew what to say after that.

* * *

Later that evening Kimberly hurried through the hospital trying not to remember how familiar she was with it. It had only been several months ago that she was a patient here. She kept looking at room numbers as she went down the hall. The nurse at the front desk had told her she couldn't miss the room. As she rounded another corner she soon discovered why it wasn't hard to miss.

"Hey Kim," Adam said standing up when he saw her standing there.

"How is he?" She asked

"He's not good," Adam said looking away. "They still haven't identified the snake that bit him."

Kimberly closed her eyes for a moment. She could almost guess who was responsible for that snakebite. They'd never leave him alone would they?

The door opened and Heidi and Michelle came out.

"Kimberly!" Heidi said hurrying over to her. "I'm glad you could make it. Tanya told me you were in Miami training for the Pan Globals."

"Yeah but I had to come see Tommy." Kimberly said with a slight smile.

"You should go in," Michelle said. "They are only allowing two visitors at a time. They allowed more before but we took up too much room."

"I'll go in with you," Adam said coming up to her. "I haven't been in yet today."

They walked into the hospital room and Kimberly barely held back a gasp when she saw Tommy. He was lying so still on the bed with Ivs sticking out of his arms. His cheeks were flushed from the fever he was running and there was sheen of sweat on his forehead. His right arm was bandaged.

She went to the side of the bed and grabbed his left hand and squeezed it.

"Hi Tommy," she greeted trying not to show the pain in her voice. "It's me Kimberly." She sat down in the chair next to the bed. Adam stood next to her. She sat there for a moment watching his chest rise and fall.

The door opened and a nurse came in.

"Hello Adam," she greeted. She smiled at Kimberly. "Another of Tommy's friends? He certainly is popular." She went up and inspected the bandages and then said, "I need to change the bandages and give him a sponge bath. Could you both wait in the hall for a few minutes?"

"Sure," Adam said as he started to leave the room. Kimberly gave Tommy's hand another squeeze before she followed him out of the room.

When she exited the room she saw two people she didn't recognize. One of them looked a lot like Tommy but the other did not look familiar to her.

"Kim this is Tommy's brother David Truheart and Jason's cousin Trent." Rocky said pointing first to the one who looked like Tommy and then the second person.

Jason's cousin? Kimberly wondered. She was pretty sure she knew all of Jason's cousins.

"I didn't know that Tommy had a brother," Kimberly said covering for her surprise.

"We both found out a couple of months ago," David said. "My grandfather and I came here as soon as we found out that Tommy was in the hospital."

"I'm visiting Jason," Trent explained.

"Where is Jason anyway?" Kim asked. Most of the other Rangers were there. Kat was staring out a window and Rocky was asleep in one of the waiting room chairs. Jason was nowhere to be found.

"He had to take care of something," Trent explained. "He'll be back soon."

Suddenly a sound that Kimberly knew very well went off. Charlotte looked up in bewilderment at the sound. Kim watched as Rocky, Adam, Kat, an African American teen, and Trent exchanged a look before making an excuse to leave.

Kim nodded. Her hunch was correct. She was almost certain that Trent wasn't Jason's cousin but who was he?


	26. Fall Like Dominoes

Notes: Thanks to Harry for the idea on the robot. I'm not a believer in something in this fic I'm just going by some things I noticed in the Zeo Quest. Tommy didn't go on one in this fic but oh well.

He stood in the dark room just staring at the teenager. He risked a lot doing what he did. So far no one seemed to be any the wiser on what had really happened in the hospital room. He had gone in and out before anyone saw him he suspected. Even Zedd who left when he discovered he wasn't going to get what he came for left before he did. The abandoned communicator would leave them guessing and by the time any of them figured out what happened, it'd be too late.

* * *

The Rangers arrived in the Power Chamber and looked up at Zordon expectantly.

"Have you found Jason yet?" Rocky asked.

"NOT YET," Zordon answered. He was as worried as his Rangers were about their missing leader. Jason had completely disappeared from his scanners and he wasn't completely certain how that happened. They had been monitoring the hospital room and had detected two teleportations and assumed one was Zedd and one was Jason. He had not suspected anything was amiss until it was brought to his attention that Jason wasn't there. He turned his attention back to his Rangers.

"VIEW THE VIEWING GLOBE. MONDO HAS SENT A MONSTER DOWN TO THE WAREHOUSE DISTRICT." They saw a robot that resembled a gladiator. "OUR PRELIMINARY SCANS SHOW THAT THIS ROBOT'S ENERGY LEVELS ARE VERY HIGH. HE USES A NET. I ADVISE USING EXTREME CAUTION WHEN FIGHTING THIS ROBOT."

There was a brief hesitation before Rocky called, "It's Morphin time!"

"Zeo Ranger 1, Pink!" Kat called.

"Zeo Ranger 2, Yellow!" Tanya called.

"Zeo Ranger 3, Blue!" Rocky called.

"Zeo Ranger 4, Green!" Adam called.

"Gold Ranger Power!" Trey called.

They all teleported down to the Warehouse District.

* * *

In the hospital, Kim was staring at the TV screen. The fight made her really miss being a Power Ranger. She looked over at Charlotte who was refusing to look at the screen. She wondered briefly if she didn't know that Tommy was a Power Ranger. Billy had filled her in on the latest Power Ranger team and she wasn't shocked to hear that Tommy had been the Gold Ranger. She had hoped that Tommy would once again be a Power Ranger. It had been unreal to see him refuse to take back the White Ranger Powers but she had come to understand that Tommy was afraid of what would happen if he did. She wasn't completely certain that it was all Zedd and Rita but she had hoped it was.

"Wow there really are Power Rangers here," Michelle said as she came out of the restroom. I mean we see them on the news all the time in Napa but I always thought they were made up."

Kim gave a small smile. "Yeah they've been protecting Angel Grove for years."

"I once asked Tommy if he ever ran into one," Heidi said. "He said he shook hands with one at Power Ranger Day."

Kim tried not to smile as she thought about that day. That happened not long before Tommy's return as the Green Ranger. They had all been excited to see him in the crowd. She had been glad no one had thought that was strange.

Charlotte grimaced as she looked at the TV again and saw the Gold Ranger get hit again. She had figured out from what she had seen on the TV before, that Tommy had been the Gold Ranger. This new Gold Ranger was definitely different looking.

Kimberly looked at her watch and decided to go in and see Tommy before getting something to eat. She peaked her head into the hospital room and found Sam sitting next to the bed.

She walked in quietly. Sam looked up at her and smiled. He turned his attention back to Tommy.

"It looks like one of your friends would like to talk to you," he said to Tommy. "I will see you again. Be strong young falcon."

Kimberly blinked a few times. How did Sam know that was Tommy's spirit animal? She wondered.

"Hello Kimberly was it?" Sam asked as he stood up.

"Yes. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"Why did you call him young falcon?"

"That is a good question," he said. "I have a way to see into someone to see who their spirit guide is," he said. "Tommy's is a falcon. It is my hope that the falcon will guide him back to us."

"Oh okay," Kimberly said nodding. "I hope so too," she said.

"I need to go back to the reservation. It was nice meeting you Kimberly."

"You too Mr. Trueheart."

He left the room. Kimberly sat in the chair next to Tommy's bed. "Your brother has a very wise grandfather." Kimberly said.

* * *

"Look out!" Trey yelled to Tanya who narrowly missed being caught in the robot's net. She rolled out of the way.

This robot was tough but none of the Power Rangers were going to quit. Just as they thought they had beaten the robot back, the robot through the net at Rocky and he was caught in it. He was shocked several times before he fell to the ground not moving.

"Distract him!" Adam said to the others. As they distracted the robot, Adam went over to cut Rocky loose from the net.

"Zordon!" Adam called into the communicator. "Rocky's been hurt. Teleport him back to the Power Chamber."

Rocky was gone in a flash of blue light. This was not what the Rangers needed to be down another Ranger. Adam had to hope that cutting the net would take that weapon away from the robot. His hopes were dashed as the Robot grew to large proportions.

They called for their zords.

* * *

He stood at a far distance watching the Rangers fight the robot. He shook his head in amusement. Take away two of their strong fighters and the enemy will fall like dominoes. He thought. He always believed that. He was going to make sure it stayed that way. Earth would be his.

Notes: Wondering who the mystery guy is? Wondering if he's a new villain or someone you all know? Well I'm not sharing that with you. The only hint you have is that it's not Zedd.


	27. A Different Shade of Gold

Zordon watched the Rangers on the Viewing Globe. Rocky's injuries were minor and he would make a quick recovery he was sure. This robot was even stronger then the scans had indicated. He just had to hope the Rangers would be able to defeat the robot.

* * *

The Rangers regrouped trying to figure out the best way to beat the robot. After the net had hit Rocky they were taking extra precautions around the robot to make sure they weren't caught in the net.

Trey held up the Golden Power Staff ready to attack the robot. He charged at the robot while its attention was diverted and hit it hard with the staff. The robot moved back shaking its arm where Trey had hit it.

"You will pay for that Gold Ranger," the robot bellowed. It made a move to take a net out but instead it pulled out a sword that it hadn't used yet in the battle with the Rangers.

"Trey look out!" Adam called.

Trey held his staff up ready to block whatever the robot was going to do. The robot simply moved back another step and then made a swish with the sword and energy flew at Trey. Trey tried to roll out of way but didn't move all the way out of the way. He hadn't been prepared for that attack. The blast hit him and he fell back and landed hard.

When Trey sat up, he was no longer morphed and all three parts of Trey were staring at each other. The unification hadn't worked. Or if it did, he had failed to hold himself together again.

* * *

Zedd watched the fight from the moon with glee. He may not have gotten what he had wanted from Tommy but it seemed as if the Gold Ranger Powers were in flux again and for the taking. He was about toe teleport down again but all three Treys were teleported up to the Command Center.

He turned to his wife who had joined him also. "Get Rito and Goldar," he ordered her. "It's time we get involved again. The Rangers are at a disadvantage right now and we can easily destroy them."

Rita smiled. She had been waiting this moment for a long time. It was why she put up with having to live in the Winnebago while the Machine Empire lived in their palace. They were finally going to defeat the Rangers. She hurried off to find Rito and Goldar.

Zedd watched her go with a smile. He wasn't completely sure if Rito and Goldar could beat the Rangers, but if they didn't, he'd go deal with the Rangers personally.

* * *

Kimberly stood there with a payphone receiver to her ear as she talked to Trini. Her attention wasn't completely on the conversation with her best friend. She kept an eye on the fight. She looked at the other onlookers and hoped none of them had realized that Jason's 'cousin' looked an awful lot like the Gold Ranger but none of them said anything. He had been shown on the TV for one brief second before they disappeared from the fight.

"So you guys are coming today?" Kimberly said turning her attention back to the conversation.

"Yes," Trini answered. "We are in Newark right now. We should be back in Angel Grove late tonight. Our plane leaves LA for Angel Grove at around 8:00 tonight. How's Tommy?"

"Not good," Kimberly admitted. "He's still in a coma and he's not getting any better," her voice started to shake. "The doctors are sounding less and less confident about him making any kind of recovery. Trini…" she trailed off when something caught her attention on the TV. That…that wasn't right. "Trini I've got to go!" She said and slammed the phone down. She hoped her friend would forgive her for that.

She reached into her backpack for a device that Billy had slipped her earlier that day. It was a communicator. She saw the white stripe and knew whose communicator it was. This communicator never seemed to want to stay with it's intended owner. She thought bitterly as she remembered how many times they tried to get Tommy to keep the communicator.

She went into a bathroom and made sure no one was inside before she teleported to the Command Center. When she arrived in the Command Center she saw the three Trents standing there looking up at Zordon. Rocky was leaning against a console still feeling shaky from the net.

"KIMBERLY," Zordon said turning his attention to the newcomer.

"I just saw that on TV," she said indicating the Viewing Globe where Rito and Goldar were attacking the robot. "Are they really helping the Rangers?" She asked still shocked.

"WE DO NOT BELIEVE IT'S ZEDD'S INTENTION TO HELP THE RANGERS," Zordon answered. "I BELIEVE HE HAS OTHER INTENSIONS."

"Yeah like defeating the Rangers since there are three there right now," Rocky answered. "Teleport me back down there."

"ROCKY YOU ARE STILL INJURED," Zordon answered.

"I'm not going to stand by and watch my friends get destroyed!" Rocky answered. "Fine if you won't teleport me there, I'll go there myself. Back to action!" He said and was gone.

"Zordon," one of the three Trents said stepping forward. "We need another Gold Ranger."

"I concur," Billy said. "Kimberly would you…"

"NO," Zordon said stopping Billy.

"But Zordon," one of the Trents started to say.

"BILLY WILL YOU TAKE THE GOLD RANGER POWERS?" Zordon asked.

"I can not," Billy answered. "My body can not handle the powers. Kimberly would be a much better candidate."

"But I have to go back to Miami eventually," Kimberly said. She hated to admit that but she knew she could not stay in Angel Grove forever.

"BILLY I HAVE SPOKEN TO THE RANGERS OF AQUITAR ABOUT YOUR HEALTH AND THEY SAID WHEN THEY RESTORED YOU TO THE CORRECT AGE, THEY WERE ABLE TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM YOU WERE EXPERIENCING THAT MADE YOU NOT A SUITABLE CANDIDATE FOR THE GOLD RANGER POWERS."

Billy looked from Zordon to the Gold Ranger. He knew there was no choice. He missed being a Ranger but it still all felt wrong. "I will do it."

"Step forward Billy," the Gold Ranger said holding up his staff. The power transfer happened quickly and then Billy was teleported to the fight.

"I'm thinking your name isn't really Trent and that you aren't Jason's cousin," Kimberly said turning to the former Gold Ranger.

"That is correct. I am Trey of Wisdom. This is Trey of Heart and Trey of Courage. I am the Prince of Triforia."

"It's nice to meet you." Kimberly said. She turned her attention back to the fight that was being displayed on the Viewing Globe.

* * *

"Trey?" Tanya asked as soon as she saw that the Gold Ranger had joined the fight.

"No it's not Trey," Billy answered.

"Billy?" Kat asked in surprise.

Billy nodded.

* * *

"Curses!" Zedd yelled from the moon. Just when he thought he had everything taken care of, the former Blue Ranger pops up. His plan was not going very well. He would let Rito and Goldar beat the robot and make them believe that they were on their side. He would destroy them at another time. A thought came to him that had been asked by many people. Where was the Red Ranger? Maybe if he could find the Red Ranger, he could persuade him to rejoin them as the Gray Ranger.

* * *

In the hospital Charlotte had had enough of watch the Ranger fight. As had Kimberly, she had noticed that the Gold Ranger was the same young man who had been introduced to her as Jason's cousin. The next time she saw him; she'd give him a piece of her mind.

She drew the curtains back on Tommy's room and stared. She turned around and hurried out of the room. She went up to the nearest nurse and demanded, "Where is my son?"

She blinked at her a few times trying to comprehend the question. "He was just in there a few minutes ago when I checked his vitals. Are you saying he's not there?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying. My son didn't just get up out of bed." She turned and looked at the TV for a moment before saying, " I want to know where he is and I want to know now."


	28. Help is Coming

The Viewing Globe changed scenes and was no longer showing the fight. It was showing Tommy's hospital room.

"Zordon," Kimberly said turning away from the Viewing Globe, "where's Tommy?"

Zordon didn't answer her question. Instead he said, "KIMBERLY PLEASE GO DOWN TO THE HOSPITAL AND BRING MRS. OLIVER HERE."

Kimberly looked quizzically at her former mentor before teleporting down to the hospital. She landed in the same stall that she had teleported out of. Thankfully there wasn't anyone in the restroom.

She walked out of the restroom and found a very distraught Charlotte Oliver almost yelling at the nurses.

"Mrs. Oliver?" Kimberly asked coming up to her.

Charlotte turned away from the nurse. "Kimberly have you seen Tommy?"

"Not in awhile. I need to talk to you."

Charlotte turned back to the nurse who had already walked away. She turned back to her son's former girlfriend and sighed. "Okay."

"Not here," Kimberly said and grabbed her hand. They went to the restroom. Kimberly looked under the stalls and found it empty.

"Kimberly what…" Charlotte started to say but she was gone in a flash of light.

In the Power Chamber, Zordon had just teleported Rocky back up. Rocky was in no shape to fight and he was almost tempted to put him in a force field to keep him from teleporting. He understood Rocky wanting to help his friends but this was not the time.

There was a flash of white light.

"Kimberly what is going on?" Charlotte demanded. She turned around to see Rocky standing there along with the three Treys. Alpha was pushing buttons on one of the consoles. "Where am I?"

"GREETINGS MRS. OLIVER," Zordon boomed.

"Who said that?" Charlotte asked turning around looking for the source of the voice. She jumped back in surprise when she saw the floating head.

"I AM ZORDON," Zordon continued. "I AM THE MENTOR OF THE POWER RANGERS."

"Where's my son?" Charlotte demanded.

"HE IS SAFE. A FRIEND HAS TAKEN HIM TO ANOTHER PLANET TO HELP HIM. HE BELIEVES HE MAY KNOW THE SNAKE THAT BIT YOUR SON."

"Why didn't someone ask me if I wanted my son to be taken off planet?" Charlotte demanded.

"THERE WAS NO TIME," Zordon answered. "WE HAD TO TELEPORT TOMMY AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. I AM SORRY WE DID NOT INFORM YOU."

"Who's this friend of yours and can he be trusted?"

"YES HE MAY BE TRUSTED. HE FEELS A SENSE OF RESPONSIBILITY TOWARDS TOMMY. I KNOW THE PEOPLE WHO ARE TAKING CARE OF HIM AND KNOW THAT TOMMY IS IN GOOD HANDS."

"Will they be able to heal Tommy?" This time Kimberly asked the question.

Zordon didn't say anything.

"Let me see if I have this right. You took my son to another planet and you don't even know if they can save him?"

"THEY ARE GOING TO MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO SAVE TOMMY." Zordon finally said.

"Did you know his father and I told him that if he returned to Angel Grove he could not be a Ranger anymore?"

"Mrs. Oliver," Trey of Heart said stepping forward. "I can answer this. There was an emergency and we had to find a new Gold Ranger before the Gold Ranger powers were lost."

"He didn't want to take them," Rocky spoke up for the first time. "Jason told me that Tommy didn't want the powers and only took them when he saw there was no other choice."

Charlotte chewed on her lip as she considered this. That brought up something else she had wanted to know. "Where is Jason?"

"WE DO NOT KNOW," Zordon answered. "WE HAVE BEEN SEARCHING FOR HIM AND HAVE BEEN UNSUCCESSFUL WITH FINDING HIM."

"I knew something like this would happen if Tommy returned to Angel Grove," Charlotte said. "Well not this specifically but the reason we took him away from Angel Grove was to protect him. We didn't have to worry about Tommy while in Napa. He was happy there. If her survives this I am taking him back to Napa."

Zordon nodded. He understood what she was saying.

Rocky watched as the Billy called for Pyramidis. Without him and Jason, the others wouldn't be able to call for their Zords. "I should be down there."

"ROCKY YOU ARE INJURED," Zordon reminded him. "THE RANGERS OF AQUITAR WILL BE HERE SOON TO ASSIST."

Rocky breathed a sigh of relief. They needed all the help they could get at this point.

* * *

He stood in the hospital corridor wondering if anyone would notice him. The hallway outside of the hospital room was now crowded with security guards. He slipped his hat further down on his face knowing if anyone saw him there were a lot of questions he did not want to answer. Until the right time came he would make his presence known. Maybe.

* * *

Notes: Short chapter I know. The mystery guy pops up again. I'm not saying who he is. As for the person who took Tommy well let's just say he has a very complicated past with the Rangers.


	29. Some Answers

The fight ended after Rito and Goldar grew in size and helped Billy defeat the robot. None of the Rangers could quite comprehend what had happened. Zedd and Rita were helping them? That just seemed so highly unlikely.

When Billy, Tanya, Kat, and Adam teleported to the Power Chamber, they found that only Zordon and Alpha were waiting for them.

"How's Rocky?" Adam asked.

"I SENT HIM HOME TO REST," Zordon answered. Zordon had waited until the fight was over before he sent him home. It was very difficult to keep the Blue Ranger from joining the fight.

"Why did Rito and Goldar help us?" Kat asked.

"I BELIEVE ZEDD HAS ULTERIOR MOTIVES FOR ASSISTING YOU. I RECOMMEND BEING CAREFUL FROM NOW ON. I AM SURE THAT ZEDD WILL REVEAL HIS PLANS SOON. I ALSO SUGGEST THET YOU ALL GO HOME AND REST."

"Come on," Tanya said, "let's go see Tommy."

They teleported out before Zordon could stop them.

When they arrived at the hospital they found the waiting room empty of its usual occupants. The Rangers exchanged looks. That was odd.

"Maybe they are in with Tommy." Kat suggested. They walked down the hall to find the hospital room empty.

"He's not here," a voice said from behind them.

They turned around to see Kimberly standing there.

"Where is he?" Adam asked his voice full of fear.

"He was taken to another facility," Kimberly said.

"Where?" Billy asked.

"I don't know the Oliver's didn't say."

Billy looked skeptically at one of his oldest friends knowing there was something wrong. He had a suspicion there was something else going on that Kimberly wasn't able to tell them. It had to do with being a Ranger or Kimberly would have told them straight out he was sure.

"There they are," a new voice said. They turned around to see Zack and Trini heading their way. "The nurses said Tommy has been discharged."

"Yeah the Oliver's took him to another facility. They didn't think he was getting the right care here."

"I think maybe we should go find out where then," Billy said. He had found himself slipping into being leader more and more. With Jason and Rocky not there he found himself needing to take over.

"Yeah I know someone that might know," Kimberly said. They walked into a deserted area and they all teleported to the Power Chamber. Kimberly already knew the answer but she wanted Zordon to tell them himself. It was his idea after all.

Zordon was not surprised when the Rangers, Kimberly, Zack, and Trini teleported to the Power Chamber. He had a feeling this was coming.

"TRINI AND ZACK IT IS GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN."

"You too Zordon," Trini said before getting back to why they were there. "Where's Tommy?"

"I HAD HIM TAKEN OFF PLANET FOR HIS PROTECTION," Zordon answered. He saw Kimberly was going to protest so he continued, "I DID NOT LIE TO MRS. OLIVER KIMBERLY. HE IS WITH PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE THEY KNOW WHAT SNAKE BIT HIM. UNFORTUNATELY DUE TO WHO ONE OF THEM WAS THEY COULD NOT COME TO EARTH."

"You told Mrs. Oliver that he felt a responsibility towards Tommy," Kimberly reminded him.

"HE DOES. THE PERSON I AM REFERRING TO IS FINSTER."

"Wait a second," Zack said, "are you sure he can be trusted? I mean I know that he was the one who brought Tommy back to us but he was the one who tortured him."

"I BELIEVE HE MAY BE TRUSTED ZACHARY," Zordon answered. "EVEN IF HE COULD NOT BE TRUSTED, TOMMY IS IN THE CARE OF THE COUNCIL. THIS IS A COUNCIL THAT GOVERNS THE LAWS OF POWER RANGERS."

"Wow I didn't know there was a Council," Kat said. "Zordon how long will it take them to heal Tommy?"

Kimberly looked up at Zordon before saying, "he doesn't know if they can."

The Rangers, Zack and Trini were all shocked. They looked at Zordon who just nodded.

* * *

Holly slammed her locker shut after first period. She looked at the wall clock and realized she had to hurry or she would be late for math. She started to walk down the hall when a voice stopped her.

"Miss Edwards could I have a word with you?"

She turned around and smiled slightly. "Sure Mr. Kaplan." She followed him into his office.

"Have a seat," he instructed.

She sat down in one of the chairs in front of his desk.

"Miss Edwards I have been trying to contact your parents regarding your transcripts for the last two days and have not received any answer."

"Oh yeah my parents are pretty busy with my grandma being sick and all," Holly said quickly. "I'm sure that's what happened."

"Well if you could have them call me I would appreciate it. We still need your transcripts from your last school. Or if you could tell us the name of the school, I'd be happy to contact them."

"I'll have my parents call you," Holly said. "I've been to so many schools I'm not sure I remember the name of the last one. It's the life of an Army brat," she said with a shrug. The warning bell rang. She stood up.

"You may go Miss Edwards. Please have your parents contact me as soon as possible it's important."

"Will do," she said and hurried out of the office.

Holly turned right until she was sure no one was noticing before doubling back and going out the door. She was in so much trouble right now.

"Tell them you're an Army brat," she mimicked. "Yeah that's working great Asa."

* * *

Notes: No offense to any one that is an 'Army brat'. Let's just say there's a reason Holly's there.


	30. When You Think You Have All the Answers

Notes: Things go kinda weird in this chapter. Blame the muses! I think you will notice a few characters in this chapter ;).

Finster looked at the readout still unsure of what to make of it. Tommy wasn't getting any better but he didn't want to admit yet that he didn't know how to fix the problem. He had been so sure that he knew the snake that had bit Tommy but it wasn't Lord Zedd's snake.

"Finster?" A voice said from the doorway.

Finster turned around to see a woman from the M-51 galaxy standing there. "Yes Cartra?"

"Zordon wishes to speak with you," she said.

Finster placed the report down on the table. He eyed the object that was sitting on the table next to it. He knew he would have to tell Zordon about what had appeared earlier that day but he didn't know how to explain it.

He grabbed it and followed her out of the room. At the last moment he changed his mind and hid the object in his pocket.

He stood in front of the screen. "Hello Zordon," he greeted.

"FINSTER," Zordon greeted. "HOW IS TOMMY DOING?"

"No change I'm afraid," Finster said. "We are doing all we can but he is not making any improvements. I'm afraid we do not know what snake bit him."

Easen, the President of the Council, stepped forward and said, "we will do everything we can to save Tommy. We have sent all of the test results to the best healers of the Council."

Zordon nodded. "PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF THERE ARE ANY CHANGES," he stopped and looked at Finster, "YOU HAVE SOMETHING."

Finster looked up at him in surprise. How did he know? How could he sense the device from there? He nodded and pulled something out of his pocket.

Zordon looked at it and saw the emblem on it. "THAT'S JASON'S MORPHER."

"It arrived only a short time ago," Finster said quickly. "Jason's not here as far as we can tell. We have no idea where it came from."

There was silence and Finster looked up to make sure Zordon was still there and found that he was being quiet.

"THAT'S NOT JASON'S MORPHER," Zordon said after a few minutes. "I JUST FOUND JASON."

* * *

"I can't believe you did that," She said plopping down in the chair next to one of her best friends.

"Well someone had to help your kid," he said as he looked up from the monitor. "I doubt he'll even notice it's missing."

"He's old not senile," another voice said coming into the room.

"I don't know," the woman said, "from what I've heard he doesn't have the best memory. Remember when he forgot to hand out the exams and someone," she looked at the man in front of the computer, "told him?"

"Hey I studied for that exam!" The man protested. "I was not going to miss getting an A. Come on Kira," he continued, "you want to make sure things go right?"

* * *

After receiving the call from Zordon, the Rangers, Kimberly, Zack, and Trini teleported to the Power Chamber.

"Where's Jason?" Billy asked stepping forward.

"OBSERVE THE VIEWING GLOBE," Zordon instructed.

They turned to see a dark room.

"I don't see anything," Adam said.

"LOOK CLOSELY."

They peered closer trying to see whatever Zordon had seen and they didn't see anything. Suddenly a noise caught all of their attention. The view on the screen pulled back further to show a figure strapped down on a table.

"WE STARTED TO RECEIVE THIS VIDEO A SHORT TIME AGO," Zordon said. "IT IS JASON BUT I HAVE YET TO FIND THE SOURCE OF THE VIDEO."

"Do we know who took him yet?" Kat asked.

"UNFORTUNATELY NO," Zordon said.

The viewing globe went dark for a brief moment before another face appeared.

"Greetings Rangers," Gasket said. "As you can see I have the Red Zeo Ranger. If you surrender to me the Gold Ranger powers, I will spare his life. The feed cut off.

The teenagers all looked at each other.

"What are we going to do?" Tanya asked.

"We have to get Jason back," Kimberly said.

"That goes without saying," Billy said. He twisted his wrists. Jason was one of his best friends. He'd do anything to save his life.

There was a bright flash of light.

"Wow so that's what that does," a voice said. They all turned around to see the newcomer and stopped in shock.

How did she get in here? They wondered.

* * *

Notes: Like the title? It goes with: I change all of the questions.


	31. Whoops!

"Wow," Holly said looking at the others who were looking at her in shock. "I didn't actually think I'd get to you know meet you in your…" she trailed off as she saw Alpha. "Alpha! I've heard all about you!" She looked up and saw Zordon. "Wow you must be Zordon. Asa's going to be…" she trailed off as she caught a glimpse of the viewing globe which was no longer blank.

The Rangers, Trini, Zack, and Kimberly turned their attention away from the newcomer and looked to see Gasket had returned.

"Have you made your decision yet?" He asked.

Holly looked at the Rangers and wanted to ask about what when she stopped. She couldn't believe what she was seeing on the screen. When she received the watch type device out of thin air, she had no idea where it would take her. Now she was standing in the Power Chamber with people she had heard stories about growing up. Now she was seeing a robot she didn't know the name of with someone…"That's Jason," she said in a whisper.

The others didn't hear her they were busy staring at Gasket. Billy step forward.

"We will make the trade."

"I'm glad to hear that. Meet me in Angel Grove Park in an hour," he said and cut off the communication.

"WHO ARE YOU?" Zordon demanded turning his attention back to Holly.

She didn't say anything as her attention was still on the Viewing Globe.

"Her name's Holly," Kat said for her. "She's in my English class."

"HOW DID YOU GET INTO THE POWER CHAMBER?" Zordon asked.

Holly turned her attention back to Zordon. "This thing appeared in my hands," she said holding up the communicator. "I had no idea what it was and was looking for a button to show what time it was and I ended up here."

"Wait you don't know what that is," Zack said pointing at the communicator, "but you know who Zordon and Alpha are."

"Oh that. I'm from the future. I grew up hearing stories about Alpha, Zordon, and other Rangers. Dr…." she trailed off realizing she wasn't supposed to really reveal anything about that future. "I mean my parents knew Power Rangers and told me."

"WHY ARE YOU HERE?"

Holly looked away for a moment. "It's really complicated. I don't want to say too much about the future other then I'm here to try to save the future but things went kinda kablooie when we got here and discovered that we were not in the right year. I was supposed to arrive about a year ago." She looked at them and they saw the tears in her eyes. "We were trying to stop this from happening."

"Who else is here?" Adam asked.

"Huh? Oh uh a friend of mine." She wiped away a tear. "I need to tell him about this. It changes everything."

Zordon watched the young woman in front of him and knew there was a lot she wasn't saying. He would have liked to ask her more questions but the time was ticking away. They had to come up with a plan to save Jason from Gasket.

* * *

Asa glared at his watch wondering where she was. The school had called to say that she had missed almost all of her classes after a meeting with the Principal. She was the only one who could be out in public without making people stop and stare. He really didn't want to go out and find her. What if he ran into people that knew him? He looked too much like him. He grabbed his hat and went outside. Where he didn't know at the moment.

He decided to walk through the park to the Youth Center. He had seen enough maps of Angel Grove to know where the Youth Center was.

As he hurried through the park he heard a strange noise not far from where he was standing. He decided to check it out. He hurried up and saw a robot dressed like a pirate standing there with other robots. What made him stop completely was the bound figure in the robots arms. "Dad?" He whispered.

* * *

The others were watching the scene from the Power Chamber.

"Wait did he just say dad," Kimberly asked looking up at Zordon. They all turned to face Holly whose face went very pale.

Holly didn't really blame Asa for the slipup. They were not ready for this.

"Uh yeah that's my friend."

* * *

"Tell me he didn't just say that," Connor said to Kira and Ethan. They were observing the park just like the Rangers were.

"I told you it was a bad idea to send things to them," Kira said.

"Dude you were the one who sent the communicator!" Connor reminded her.

"I need to help them," Kira said. "Jason would have done the same thing."

"After I killed you for sending my son to the past."

They turned around to see Jason Scott, Tommy Oliver, and Trent Fernandez standing there.

Kira smiled weakly before going up to her husband Trent. "We had to do something to save the future. If we didn't interfere Jade and Alex wouldn't be alive." She looked at her former Mentor. "And we wanted to save you Dr. O. But it didn't work the way it was supposed to."

Jason turned his attention back to the screen. "Gasket's up to something. I don't think he's just after the Gold Ranger powers. There's something wrong with Jason…er me. Do you ever feel weird bro?"

"No. What do you feel?" Tommy asked.

"Just like I did when history changed and I had been the Grey Ranger."


	32. You Love Me Anyway

Notes: This is a flashback chapter. KLOVe seemed to agree with me this chapter. I listened to: Faith Can Do by Kutless, Bring the Rain by MercyMe, Hold Me by Jamie Grace, Praise You in the Storm by Casting Crowns, You Are by Jason Castro, and most of them seemed to fit the fic. Also the title of the song is from the last song I listened to while writing it because it fit. You Love Me Anyway by Sidewalk Prophets.

_Charlotte and Ryan Oliver sat in their apartment in Los Angeles impatiently awaiting the arrival of their new son. The two had married right after high school. Charlotte had gone to college to pursue a career in banking and Ryan, who had always dreamed of being a cop, joined the police force. They had been trying for several years to have a child and now their prayers had been answers. _

_The doorbell rang. _

"_I'll get it," Ryan said getting up from the couch. He opened the door to let a social worker enter. She was leading a two-year-old boy into the house. _

_Charlotte got up off the couch and knelt down in front of the little boy. "Hi," she said._

_The boy turned shyly away._

"_He's a little shy. Tommy say hi to your new mom and dad," the Social Worker said softly._

"_It's okay," Charlotte said smiling at the Social Worker. _

_The Social Worker looked at the folder in her hand. "I think all of the paper work has been taken care of. If you two have any questions or concerns please don't hesitate to call me." She said and left._

"_Would you like something to eat?" Charlotte asked._

_He nodded._

"_Let's get you something to eat." Charlotte said taking one of her hands and led him into the kitchen. Ryan followed right behind them with a smile._

* * *

Charlotte sat in her house in Napa. She had returned to Napa not long after she found out Tommy was taken off planet. She wished she could be with him but she knew she couldn't. She picked up another photo album and started flipping through it. The first picture was a picture of Tommy eating his first meal as an Oliver. She smiled remembering how things were back then.

She flipped through a few more pages of pictures of Tommy growing up. Another picture made her stop as memories took over for her.

* * *

_Charlotte and Ryan stood in the crowd watching Tommy's first karate tournament. Charlotte was nervous as she watched. Tommy had taken a real liking for karate. His teachers had told both of the Oliver's that Tommy had amazing talent and they wouldn't be surprised if Tommy made it through the ranks quickly. He was only eight years old and was already competing in karate tournaments. _

"_Oh I can't look!" Charlotte said as Tommy's name was announced for the match._

_Ryan chuckled. "You said that the last two matches," he reminded her. "And you still peaked."_

"_Well this is his last one," she said as she dropped her hands away from her eyes. Her husband was right. She couldn't help but watch._

"_He's going to win," the mother next to them said. "I was watching his opponent earlier and he's not nearly as good as Tommy."_

_Charlotte beamed hoping that was true. Nevertheless, Charlotte watched the match with her breath held. She only let it go as the announcer said that Tommy Oliver had one._

_Both Olivers hurried through the crowd down to Tommy. He was bowing to his competitor and the referee. He ran over to them._

"_I won!" He cried._

_Charlotte and Ryan grabbed him in a hug. _

"_Congratulations Tommy!" Charlotte said. _

"_I'm so proud of you." Ryan said. _

_Charlotte and Ryan stood off to the side and watched Tommy receive his trophy both still beaming with pride._

"_Okay Tommy stand there," Charlotte instructed as she took out her camera. "I'm going to get a picture of this."_

"_Ah mom…" _

"_No buts." Charlotte said with a chuckle. "I want to remember this moment."_

_Tommy stood there trying to look proud but the happiness showed through even more._

* * *

"Charlotte?" Ryan asked coming into the room. "Are you still looking at the pictures?"

Charlotte looked up and nodded. She couldn't speak at first. "Do you remember this one?" She asked after a few moments.

Ryan took the picture and looked at it. "How could I forget?"

* * *

_Eleven-year-old Tommy stood in the hospital looking through a window. He kept shifting weight from one foot to the other. He was definitely feeling patient. "Which one is Corey?" He asked._

_Ryan smiled and pointed at the baby in the second row. "That one."_

"_Wow he's so tiny." Tommy said. "When can I see him?" _

_Ryan was glad to see that Tommy was so excited about having a brother. He and Charlotte had been more then a little worried but were more then pleased that Tommy was handling things so well. He had even helped decorate the nursery and even helped pick a name when they found out Charlotte was expecting a boy._

"_Soon." Ryan promised. "You want to go see your mom?"_

_Tommy nodded and they walked down the hall to the hospital room that Charlotte was in. She was lying in bed looking exhausted. Her face beamed as she saw Tommy and Ryan standing in the doorway. Tommy hurried over and gave her a hug._

"_You see Corey yet?" She asked._

"_Yep. He's so tiny though."_

_Charlotte chuckled. "Yes he is but he's healthy and that's important."_

"_Hello!" A cheerful voice said from the doorway. Charlotte looked up to see her little brother, Josh, standing in the doorway. His girlfriend Stephanie and a nurse who was wheeling Cory into the room followed him._

"_You must be the big brother," the nurse said smiling at Tommy. "Would you like to hold him?"_

_Tommy nodded enthusiastically. The nurse instructed him to sit down and then she placed the baby in his arms. _

"_Ryan quick get a picture!" Charlotte ordered._

"_Ah mom…" Tommy started to protest._

"_We are not going to miss this," Charlotte said._

_Snap_

* * *

"I don't know who was more excited about Corey. Us or Tommy," Ryan said smiling.

They looked at the pictures some more. Charlotte slammed the book quickly as she got to the pictures from Angel Grove. "We should have never let him go," she sobbed. "Now we are going to lose him. I can't lose him Ryan."

Ryan put a hand on her shoulder. He didn't know how to comfort her as he was feeling the same anguish he was. Tommy was their oldest son and they loved him so much.


	33. Game Over

Notes: Oh boy is this chapter short. Let's just say it kind of seemed like a really good place to end it…

The Rangers all looked expectantly at Holly who just looked sheepish.

"That's Jason's son?" Trini asked. The hat was too low on his face for him to tell.

"Yeah his name's Asa Scott," Holly said. "My name's not really Holly," she said with a sigh. "But you wouldn't know my parents anyway but my name is Jade Fernandez." Jade hoped that they would believe that she wasn't the daughter of two Power Rangers.

There was a flash of light and the Aquitian Rangers greeted the Rangers.

Delphine stepped forward. "I'm sorry we could not get here sooner," she said to Zordon. She turned to face the Rangers. "It is good to see you again Adam, Billy, and Rocky."

"We are glad to see you too," Billy said. "Delphine, Aurico, Cestro, Tideus, and Corcus this is Tanya, Kimberly, Zack, Trini and Jade."

"It is good to meet you," Aurico said.

"Rangers," A voice called. They all turned their attention back to the Viewing Globe where they saw that Gasket was still standing there. "Your time is about up."

"What is going on?" Castro asked.

"Gasket has kidnapped Jason," Rocky said. "He said he would give Jason back if we gave him the Gold Ranger Powers."

"We must go down there," Kat said noticing how menacingly Gasket was holding the sword at Jason.

"I agree." Rocky said before stepping forward and calling, "it's Morphin' Time!"

"Zeo Ranger 1, Pink!" Kat called.

"Zeo Ranger 2, Yellow!" Tanya yelled.

"Zeo Ranger 3, Blue!" Rocky called.

"Zeo Ranger 4, Green!" Adam called.

"Gold Ranger Power!" Billy called.

"Rangers of Aquitar full power!" The Rangers of Aquitar called.

They teleported out.

"Is Jason going to be okay," Jade asked Zordon.

"I DON'T KNOW," Zordon answered truthfully. He sensed there was something not quite right but he could not put his finger on it. "ALPHA I WANT YOU TO TELEPORT JASON HERE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE."

"Oh ai yai yai!" alpha said. "I can teleport him now." He started hitting buttons.

"DO SO QUICKLY ALPHA AND PUT A FORCE FIELD AROUND HIM. SOMETHING'S NOT RIGHT." He turned his attention to Jade, Trini, Zack, and Kimberly before teleporting them out of the Power Chamber.

* * *

The Rangers all approached Gasket nervously. Gasket moved his sword away from Jason and turned his attention to the Rangers.

"Have you made your decision?" He asked.

Before any of the Rangers could answer there was a flash of light and Jason was gone.

"Yes," Billy said stepping up. "We are going to fight you."

"You think you won Rangers?" Gasket said with a laugh. "Do you realize what you just did?"

The Rangers exchanged looks.

"Zordon come in." Tanya said into her communicator but all she received no answer.

"Foolish Rangers," Gasket said. "Cogs get them!"

The Zeo Rangers fought the cogs and the Aquitian Rangers attacked Gasket. The Zeo Rangers were having no trouble beating back the Cogs. Once they were finished with the Cogs all of the Rangers took on Gasket. It seemed that they would finally win but the Prince of the Machine Empire had one trick up his sleeve.

"Psst!" A voice said from somewhere behind Asa. He turned around to see Jade, Trini, Zack, and Kimberly.

He hurried over to them. "What's going on?" He asked.

"I have no idea," Trini said. "Zordon teleported us out of the Power Chamber before teleporting Jason."

"Something's wrong," Asa said. "Wait," he said with a wrinkled brow. "How did you know I knew who Zordon was?"

"I sort of told them," Jade said. "They also overheard you say dad."

There was a bright flash of light that stopped the conversation. They all turned around to see that Tanya, Kat, Rocky, and Adam had morphed back to their street clothes.

Gasket let out a laugh.

"I always win Rangers." He said. "Zordon's dead and soon Jason will know where Tommy is and he will finish him off. Game over Rangers."

Jade and Asa exchanged looks but they were gone in a flash of light.

* * *

Notes: Okay that was a really short chapter but it seemed to be the best place to stop. Oh did I mention that I think the fic ends next chapter? Well I didn't say the series ends there. As for Jade, well I did pretty much say who she was a couple of chapters ago.


	34. The End

Notes: I can't believe I have reached the end of this fic. It wasn't long ago that I was thinking this fic wouldn't end and then an ending came to me. This chapter didn't quite go the way I had originally imagined it but it still brings me to where I want to be.

The Rangers exchanged worried looks. Zordon was dead?

There was a bright flash of light marking the appearance of Rita and Zedd.

"Could things get any worse?" Kimberly asked.

"Don't even say that." Zack said though he had been wondering the same thing. This whole thing was a nightmare.

"We need to get to Tommy," Trini said.

"How?" Kimberly asked. "No one knows where he is."

"You will not be the one to defeat the Power Rangers," Zedd said to Gasket. "I will be the one to defeat the Power Rangers. I started it by throwing the snake at Tommy."

"I knew it!" Kat said to the others.

"And I will finish it," Zedd continued.

"I am the one who turned their leader against them twice and he did what you could never do, Zedd, he killed Zordon."

The Zeo Rangers and Aquitian Rangers stood there watching Zedd and Gasket argue over who should destroy the Power Rangers.

Billy turned to his fellow Rangers. He and the Aquitian Rangers were still morphed. "I'm going to go up to the Power Chamber to investigate." He said and used his morpher to teleport up to the Power Chamber.

When he arrived he found the place dark. He approached carefully not completely certain what he would find.

He did not see Alpha anywhere. He looked up at where Zordon would be and found he wasn't there either.

He went on his guard. "Jason?" He called.

There was silence.

Billy went over to one of the consoles to see if there was anything he could do and found something sitting on the console. It was Jason's morpher. His brow furrowed. Why would Jason leave his morpher?

He continued to look around and found no clues.

Suddenly there were a lot of noises coming from the console. Billy prepared for the worst. There was a flash of light.

* * *

There was a flash of light and the Rangers were back in their Power Ranger suits.

"Billy must have done it!" Kimberly said excitedly.

"No!" Gasket yelled. "This is impossible! Jason should have destroyed the Power Chamber!"

Zedd chuckled. "If I have learned anything about the Red Ranger it is he never does what you think he will do."

"Uh Zeddie," Rita said as she watched the Zeo Rangers readying to attack with their weapons.

"Not now Rita," Zedd said without turning to face her. He was not ready for the attack. He took a few hard hits before he and Rita disappeared.

Gasket grew in proportions. The Aquitian Rangers and the Zeo Rangers fought a hard fight and won. They powered down and hurried over to where Kimberly, Trini, and Zack stood.

"Where's Jade and Asa?" Adam asked.

"They disappeared right after you guys lost power," Zack said. "You don't think…"

"I don't want to even think about that," Trini said. "Maybe they were pulled back to their time."

"I'm so glad Zordon's okay," Tanya said.

"Let's get back up to the Power Chamber," Rocky suggested. They all teleported up to the Power Chamber. They found a bewildered looking Billy standing there in front of Zordon.

"Zordon," Kat started to stay but stopped. That wasn't Zordon.

"GREETINGS RANGERS," the woman said. "MY NAME IS DIMITRIA. I HAVE BEEN SENT TO ASSIST YOU."

"Where's Zordon?" Kimberly asked as fear gripped her.

"THAT IS UNKNOWN," Dimitria answered. "IT APPEARS THAT HE HAS DISAPPEARED. THE COUNCIL DETECTED THE LOSS OF POWER AND SENT ME TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM."

The Rangers all exchanged worried looks.

"Guys," Billy said. He really hated bringing this up but he felt they should know.

The others turned around to face him. He held up the Red Zeonizer.

"Jason's morpher?" Tanya asked. "None of this makes sense."

"I WISH I HAD ANSWERS," Dimitria said. "I DO KNOW THAT WE NEED TO PREPARE FOR WHAT WILL COME NEXT. I DO NOT BELIEVE THE MACHINE EMPIRE WILL LET THINGS REST."

"Right," Rocky said. "And we still need to find Tommy."

Dimitria looked at the Rangers before saying, "I AM SO SORRY RANGERS. TOMMY HAS PASSED AWAY."

* * *

Notes: Yes I am that mean to leave it there. Look for the fourth fic in the series, Missing Red, to be posted soon. Trust me when I say that title has a lot of meanings.


End file.
